


A Piece Of Summer

by FatalViolet520



Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Beach, Alternate Universe - College/University, Attempts at courting, Chan being a Concerned Parent, Changbin calls Jisung 'brat' affectionately, Established Seungjin, M/M, Seungmin is a savage fucker and won't hesitate to drag ur ass, advice: if u have to make decisions cry first it helps u clear ur mind, disclaimer: i do not endorse unhealthy work habits like dancing for 5 hours straight, does it count as slowburn if it's a oneshot, established woochan, even if it does happen over two weeks irl, i hope you guys like to read commas bc i sure as fuck do, im so impulsive, in another world this would have been a coffeeshop au, montage of people being grossly in love, reference to memes, reference to mental illness, some heart to heart talks as well, the minsung summer au, yohoho bithces lets gO
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-23
Updated: 2018-08-23
Packaged: 2019-06-14 20:38:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 40,354
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15396978
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FatalViolet520/pseuds/FatalViolet520
Summary: What is summer to Jisung? Summer is Minho, to Jisung.It isn’t just warm heat and gritty sand in his toes, isn’t just cool water splashing against his knees as he braves the ocean, isn’t just a too-long holiday away from school and the city and stress anymore.Now, summer is bright smiles and brighter laughter, with words sharper than the lemonade the corner stall sells; summer is a night sky clear with constellations and a soft body fitting into his side, whispered conversations overheard only by the moon; summer is watching a body cloaked in sunshine and shrouded in moonlight dancing to the melody of the waves and beat of the wind and eventually joining that dance.Summer is falling for each other, even if it's a little bit early to call it love.





	A Piece Of Summer

**Author's Note:**

> i have no impulse control (my best friend is 85% of my impulse control) so here you go a minsung summer au bc i thirst for slowburn but i dont wanna write a multichap and i went overboard ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯ i hope you enjoy this anyway lmao ALSO i apologise for any inconsistencies throughout the fic i have no beta, and i edited and proofread this myself, so it is very possible that i missed something out.
> 
> so much of my thank you's goes to @kindaweiird and @solilogyu on tumblr; the first one, for proofreading a small section of my work in one scene and telling me what is something stupid that Felix will realistically do and get himself injured; the second, for proofreading the first scene and giving me feedback! My thanks also extends to my irl friend who proofread the first scene and told me im a slut for long sentences and that should change but in nicer words. 
> 
> i really like the word 'courting' and it shows in this fic it is 100% indulgent ALSO it gets a bit heavy around the part where minho and seungmin are together and they talk so just a heads up!! it is implied/mentioned that jisung suffers from insomnia, minho has mild anxiety exacerbated by stress and changbin has a heavy-ish past that is not explored in this fic as of this point. 
> 
> alright now that's out of the way - i hope you enjoy reading this fic! it's been a baby of mine for a month and i really hope you like the story!

 

_The moment I saw you,_

_I think I saw the sea._

 

* * *

The clock reads at around 2 in the morning, but it can’t be, because otherwise Jisung has just spent 10 hours at his computer trying to tweak his goddamn song. 

 

He decides the clock must be broken. 

 

Alas, his phone - which cannot be broken, even if it was rolled over by a goddamn monster truck then tossed in a blender - reads the time in a bright white font.  _ 2:21a.m. _ Jisung has officially spent ten hours trying to perfect a song that refuses to be perfected, and he suddenly understands why Chan and Changbin spend so much of their time cursing out their computer. 

 

Staring at his too-bright laptop screen, he decides to leave it. For now. After all, he has the whole summer vacation to spend torturing himself and tweaking his song until he’s satisfied with it. 

 

Summer vacation - four long weeks of freedom from textbook-strict professors who would breathe down his neck for wanting to use a different transition chord and four weeks of no deadlines... apart from the one paper he has to submit by the last week before he enters his second year of university. 

 

Jisung has absolutely no plans for his summer apart from wasting away in his dorm. His parents are away on vacation, having left two weeks earlier overseas to visit his siblings working there and most of his friends have left for their hometown. He's lucky his dorm is off-campus, otherwise he'd have to find accommodation for the summer - something he hates. With the music equipment already set up in the increasingly ever-cramped space of his dorm room, trying to work without them in a strange environment is enough to make him have a mental breakdown. 

 

“Go the  _ fuck  _ to sleep,” A voice sounds suddenly from outside his door and he releases an unholy shriek. Clearly, he’s forgotten that he has a roommate who, much like him, often stays up till ridiculous hours only to regret it when morning comes.

 

“ _ What the hell _ \- come in -”

 

Changbin opens the door, looking severely unimpressed, “It is - two thirty in the morning. What's with the song that's kept you in this room for the whole day? Have you even eaten something?” He eyes Jisung in all his unkempt appearance and answers the question for himself.

 

Jisung saves his non-existent progress and closes his laptop, smiling sheepishly, “The beat didn't fit with the harmonies at first and then I got picky with the pitch.” Then he eyes Changbin, who is dressed in day wear and arches an eyebrow at him. 

 

“What're you doing up anyway? I swear I heard you go to bed near midnight,” 

 

Changbin shrugs. “You heard me. I couldn't sleep so I went out for a walk -”

 

“Hyung, that's  _ dangerous _ !”

 

“ - And I come back to find my dongsaeng still awake like the idiot he is. Go to sleep otherwise Channie-hyung will question why both of us look like we had a fistfight with death.”

 

“It's not a fistfight if I used my feet,” Jisung says vaguely, reaching for a pair of sweatpants, having finally realised how uncomfortable his jeans are, “And let's be real. If we ever got into a fistfight with death Chan-hyung would win. Have you never seen him when he's had, like, 13 minutes of sleep?”

 

“Didn't he nearly stab his eye with a fork?” Changbin asks with a vague air of concern.

 

“Oh yeah, thank god he lives with Woojin-hyung now, who’s at least a normal, functional human being,”

 

“We need to find someone normal in our lives,” Changbin says with all the sage of living nearly 20 years, “We spent all our normal on the first few songs we made,”

 

“All that's left is coffee and bitterness to prove Professor Lee wrong,” Jisung agrees, “Now get out of here, hyung. I want to sleep and unless you wanna cuddle I'm banishing you until at least 11 tomorrow.”

 

“Brat,” Changbin huffs, “But we have to wake at 9. Chan-hyung wants to meet at the coffee shop at 10 -”

 

“I'm already fucked,” Jisung says out loud, then falls onto his bed with a loud thump and an almost convincing snore. 

 

“Brat,” Changbin hisses again before shutting the door. 

 

Jisung is out like a light, something that hasn’t happened too often, so before the darkness rushes over him in a wave, the last thing he remembers thinking is a thankful  _ at least I can actually fall asleep _ .

 

* * *

 

Jisung’s prediction is unfortunately true. They both wake up at 11 to the sound of their doorbell being pressed at an alarming pace - they’re definitely going to get complaints from their neighbour if it lasts any longer.

 

“Stop abusing the doorbell,” Changbin roars, aggrieved, “I'm coming!”

 

By the time Jisung’s shuffled out to the living room, Chan is in the kitchen and Changbin’s heading off all of Chan’s concerned questions at a pace that suggests he’s done it before. “Yes, we’ve been eating properly - just, maybe not last night,” Changbin mumbles at the end in the hopes that Chan does not hear him. 

 

“What?  _ Nothing _ last night? I swear to god -”

 

“Jisungie!” Woojin calls from his spot on the sofa, “Come sit with hyung. What did you do yesterday?” He knows all too well that Jisung, when in a sleepy state, often spills any sort of information wanted. 

 

Unaware he’s about to undo Changbin’s past 15 minutes of subtle truth-avoiding work, Jisung yawns and mumbles a, “Was trying to make the song work but I’m still not happy. And Changbin-hyungie went for a walk at two in the morning.” He blinks owlishly at Woojin who tries not to melt as his large eyes and puffy cheeks, “I’m hungry, hyung. Didn’t eat anything yesterday -”

 

Chan lets out a loud coo as he crushes Jisung, who immediately snaps wide awake and gives a pained yelp, suffocating with Chan’s affection. “Hyung -” He chokes, “- Can’t -  _ can’t breathe _ -” He emits a startling noise that sounds like a dying whale.

 

“Channie!”

 

“Alright, alright - At least you guys were better than last term… I mean, I hope you guys are,” He directs an unnervingly sharp glance at both Jisung and Changbin, “Right? Was it  _ only  _ last night you guys didn’t eat?” Jisung shifts around, giving a noncommittal grunt as he rubs the sleep out of his eyes and lets out an almost convincing yawn.

 

“I’ll just be… washing up - you know, getting ready,” Jisung says, “Like - Like I should be!” He gives a laugh, a little too high for it to be natural and sprints into the bathroom when Chan rounds on him with a  _ See you in a while hyung _ ! spilling from his lips in a panicked rush.

 

“ _ Han Ji _ -”

 

Jisung spends as much time as he can in the bathroom so Changbin bears the brunt of Chan’s scoldings. He feels slightly guilty when he hears Chan’s nagging through the bathroom door as he brushes his teeth, and resolves to make up for it by dialing down his oft random bouts of screaming when he finds something that he inexplicably hates. For a while, at least. His guilt wouldn’t last two weeks. 

 

“Get outta there,” Changbin drawls lowly and suddenly outside the bathroom, “I need to pee.” 

 

Jisung rinses his mouth and gauges that Changbin is leaning against the door with how clear he can hear Changbin’s voice. The thought occurs to him for a split-second - he could potentially open the door and let Changbin fall, but he’s just taken the fall for Jisung so he yells, “Okay, I’m coming out now,” before opening the door. 

 

“Glad you came out,” Changbin says. 

 

Jisung snorts. “Wonderful joke, hyung. Why don’t  _ you _ stop suppressing your sexuality?”

 

“I’m straight,” Changbin says, muffled by the sound of running water. 

 

“Chan-hyung, Changbin-hyung said he’s straight!” Jisung shouts from his bedroom, swapping his sweatpants for another significantly cleaner pair of sweatpants. He can hear laughter from the kitchen; when he walks out, Chan’s filling Woojin in on Changbin’s past summer crush from two years ago.

 

“Changbin really liked that guy,” Chan said thoughtfully, “But he never got his name so we couldn’t help him find the guy, and he refused to tell us anything about him, like his features. I don’t think Changbin’s liked anyone else before and after that guy.”

 

“Said it was a last-year-high-school-summer fling,” Jisung says, flopping onto the dining chair, “I don’t believe him.”

 

“Talking smack about my love life again?”

 

“Not one bit.” 

 

Before either Changbin and Jisung can have another go at each other, Chan talks over both of them. “Anyway,” Chan interrupts, “Before I get caught in the crossfire of you clusterfucks living together after I moved out, we came here to ask you if you had any plans for summer vacation.”

 

“What, other than rotting away producing songs?” Changbin says, before he’s quelled by a look from Chan. 

 

“Because if you didn’t,” Woojin chimes in, “Chan’s cousin invited him back to their family resort for most of summer - I think it was three weeks - and he said we could bring a few friends. So, here we are, asking you, because Chan considers you his closest, most loved, most precious -”

 

“ _ Woojin _ ,” Chan says, laughing, sliding an arm around Woojin’s waist, “The kids will think you’re jealous.”

 

“Am not,” Woojin returns, laughter crinkling the corners of his eyes, “I’m reenacting what you told Felix when he was over last week.”

 

Jisung ignores Changbin dropping his spoon in favour of leaning closer to the couple, “Wait, like, a free holiday? At a resort? Seriously? For almost the whole summer?”

 

Chan nods. “I was surprised too, but I called my aunt and she said since it’s my last year and all, she thought I’d appreciate this kind of graduation gift better than a gift card for clothes or something. Though she asked me why I kept wearing the same clothes -”   
  


“Hyung, you do,” Jisung says flatly.

 

“Because all of you go sneaking around my wardrobe and steal clothes like you don’t think I notice! I have nothing left to wear and you guys never do the laundry!” Chan says exasperatedly, “But do you guys want to come along? If you do, better get packing, we’re leaving the day after by train.” 

 

There’s a brief moment of silence before Jisung pulls a plate of eggs towards him and starts shovelling it in his mouth with hardly any sense of decency. “Got things to pack, hyung!” He chirps when he manages to swallow his mouthful, “Do you think people will stare on the train if I pack some of my music stuff too? Whatever, they can stare, I don’t care. I can lug my audio interface and speakers there, right? Three weeks is long and there’s a paper I need to finish for Professor Lee… Right - Okay - I’m gonna -”

 

“At least  _ someone _ is excited,” Chan remarks dryly as Jisung dashes back into his bedroom, “It’ll be okay, Changbin - you know, the sand and the sun and the sea… Might give you some inspiration away from the doom and gloom of the city,” He eyes Changbin, who looks way too lethargic as he drops the dishes in the sink where they’ll be left to mold for a few days, “Is anything going on?”

 

Changbin hums and leans against the kitchen counter, “Nah, not really. Was just - yeah - it’s nothing. Something crossed my mind but it’s nothing important,” He waves an airy hand and shouts as he disappears into this bedroom, “You better deliver what you promised hyung! I’m suing if I don’t get the sand and the no-emo or whatever it was.”

 

“It’s called the ocean,” Jisung bellows from the next room over, followed by a loud crash and an equally loud swear, “Maybe you’d know it if you actually stepped out of your room.”

 

“ _ You fucking brat  _ -”

 

“What a nice day,” Woojin says offhandedly, staring out the window. 

 

Chan sighs. “Wonder what it’s like to have normal friends…”

 

* * *

 

As it is, Chan doesn’t even have a normal brother. He’s waiting by the train station with Woojin and Jeongin - his younger brother whom he loves very much, though whether that love was reciprocated was A Discourse For Another Time - for Changbin and Jisung, who are presumably late, as always. 

 

“Is Felix meeting us there?” Woojin asks him in a low tone. It’s quite early in the morning and Jeongin is slumped over on a bench, half-asleep and he isn’t about to wake Jeongin up anytime soon.

 

“Oh yeah,” Chan replies in the same quiet tone, “He’s meeting us at the train station. Apparently my aunt told him he needed to wait there since the afternoon when we’ll actually arrive in the evening and he won’t stop whining about it.” 

 

It’s barely six in the morning, the rush hour not having settled in yet, and the quietness of the university station is something they’re all inherently grateful for. However, the peacefulness of their surroundings is interrupted by the ever-increasing volume of luggage wheels on tiles and the gentle break of whispered conversation washes over them as Changbin and Jisung approach them from the entrance. 

 

“Hi, hyung,” Jisung murmurs, having previously caught sight of Jeongin curled up on the bench. 

 

“Hey,” Changbin says quietly too, “Got here in the end. We had to double back when Jisung forgot his bag with his speakers.” 

 

Before Jisung can interject with a heated retort, Jeongin gives a huge yawn and sits up, stretching uncomfortably as his bones crack ominously. “Ah - hyung - everyone’s here, is the train here yet?” He reaches for his bag, which he had been using as a makeshift pillow and hugs it close to him, resting his chin on it. 

 

“It’ll be here in 10 minutes,” Chan says, sitting beside Jeongin and ruffling his hair, “Did you get any sleep? I know we were out really early today.” 

 

“I dozed a bit,” Jeongin says, “I woke up just before Changbin-hyung and Jisung-hyung came - wait, where’s my luggage?” 

 

“It’s with me,” Woojin calls, tapping the handle of Jeongin’s suitcase. “By the way, have you eaten breakfast?” He directs this question to Changbin and Jisung, both of whom are leaning on their suitcases, looking more asleep than awake. 

 

“I ate some cereal,” Changbin mumbles indistinctly, in danger of toppling over along with his suitcase at any moment, “I think I accidentally ate the expired one though, it tasted weird.” 

 

“That’s cause you poured coffee into your cereal instead of milk,” Jisung says, closing his eyes, “I don’t think fruit loops mix well with coffee.” 

 

“Ah, fuck,” Changbin grumbles.

 

“You guys are such a mess,” Woojin says.

 

“Well,  _ excuse us _ for being stressed out university students.” 

 

“The train is here!” Chan says loudly before their disagreement can escalate any further, “C’mon, Jeonginnie, take your suitcase,” They board the train, the compartment void of anyone due to the time and they slump over on the hard seats, too sleepy to bother about their uncomfortable state.

 

“You’re going to have terrible backache,” Woojin says flatly, observing Jisung curling up in his seat and Changbin propping his feet on his suitcase (bad choice. Bad choice. He almost slips off his seat when the train starts moving). 

 

Chan makes a noise that indicates he couldn’t really care. 

 

“See if I’ll massage your back then,” Woojin mutters as Chan closes his eyes.

 

* * *

 

In retrospect, Chan should have taken Woojin’s warnings seriously, both about the backache and the threat not to massage said back. “I’m gonna die,” He whimpers pathetically as his back cracks balefully, “ _ I’m gonna die _ .” 

 

“You had it coming,” Woojin says offhandedly, wheeling his suitcase outside the station into the evening sun, “I told you and would you listen?  _ No _ , you slept over the armrest and your side and back hurts so you get to deal with it.” 

 

“How are  _ you _ not hurting?” Jisung asks, staring grumpily at Woojin. 

 

“I slept straight,” Woojin says primly.

 

“You’re the furthest thing from straight,” Chan says, side-eyeing him. 

 

Woojin stares at him. “You - You’re absolutely hopeless -”

 

“ _ Hyung _ !” A loud shout turns their head to a small convenience store opposite the station where a guy with bright orange hair is waving enthusiastically, running towards them. The closer he gets, the clearer they can hear what he’s saying - a stream of  _ you guys are here  _ and  _ welcome guys I’ve been waiting for ages _ . Chan has maybe five seconds to prepare the guy absolutely  _ glomps _ him, arms tight around Chan. 

 

“Hi -” Chan gasps, though he squeezes back just as tightly, “Hi Felix - my favourite dongsaeng!” 

 

“Unfair!” Jisung says immediately. 

 

“I’m your  _ brother _ , your  _ flesh and blood _ ,” Jeongin squawks. 

 

Chan looks at them from the crook of Felix’s neck and hums thoughtfully. “Felix, how do you feel being demoted to second favourite? Jeongin  _ is  _ my younger brother.”

 

“Fair enough,” Felix concedes, letting go of Chan to face the rest of them, “Minho-hyung’s my first favourite hyung after you then.” He smiles brightly at all of them eyes jumping from face to face, “My name’s Felix, in case Channie-hyung didn’t tell you, and I’m his - his -” His eyes have landed on Changbin, who’s been staring at him astonished the whole time, “Hey - aren’t you -  _ Changbin-hyung _ ?” 

 

There’s an uproar. “You know each other and you guys didn’t tell me?” Chan cries melodramatically. 

 

“ _ You _ -” Changbin splutters, “Felix, you -  _ you _ ’ _ re _ Felix? Chan-hyung’s Felix? The cousin Felix? Fuck - I didn’t know -”

 

“You never told me you know Channie-hyung or Jeonginnie!” Felix says, looking equally as astonished. 

 

“You both knew each other at some point and didn’t realise you had a mutual friend,” Jeongin summarises for everyone’s benefit, “Why don’t you get your shit together -”

 

“ _ Language _ , Jeongin.”

 

“Wherefore don’t thee solve thy horror and confusion together you clusterfucks -”

 

“ _ Jeongin _ !”

 

“You said it us a few days ago,” Jisung says blandly, “He probably learned it from you, hyung. You can’t possible blame him.” 

 

Chan looks flabbergasted. 

 

“He’s right,” Woojin says, patting Chan’s head kindly, “You did well, Channie, don’t worry -”

 

“Are you going to ignore the fact that you guys know each other?” Jisung says over Woojin’s condolences as Changbin seems struck dumb and Felix looks very shy all of a sudden. “Um - guys?” Changbin is studiously looking away from Felix, who’s steadily turning redder every second, and Chan decides to take pity on them. 

 

“Well, that’s one less introduction then,” Chan says cheerfully, “Felix, the one beside Changbin is Jisung. You guys are the same age, you guys will get along well, I know both of you. You know Woojin right -”

 

“You’re the one Chan won’t stop talking about,” Felix says innocently, peering at Woojin with all the naivety and curiosity of a kitten, “The last time he called me he said he just came back from a date with his boyfriend and it was perfect but you were perfecter, and it sounded like hyung was completely in love with you -”

 

“Um - Felix -” Chan interrupts, blushing all the way up to the tips of his ears, “Yeah - you know Jeongin, let’s go to the resort! How far away is it?”

 

“Whipped,” Jeongin says under his breath.

 

As it turns out, the resort is a half hour away from the train station, so they load into a van driven by Felix’s eomma; he had called her some ten minutes previously, asking her to come pick everyone up. They manage to squeeze in together with their luggage, everyone uncomfortable enough not to fall asleep between the soft seats and cool air conditioning. 

 

“I’ve given you guys most of the left wing,” Felix’s eomma informs them as the scenery outside changes from grass to small houses and a sliver of golden sand starts snaking its way into their vision, “Though there are some people there as well, you might do well to get to know them if you don’t know them already. They’re Felix’s friends, so he’ll introduce you guys.”   
  


“Yeah,” Felix says, “Eomma, where’s hyungie? I thought he was coming with you as well.”

 

“Ah, your hyung is with Seungmin and Hyunjin, then I think he said he would leave  to dance again, so he didn’t come along with me.” 

 

Felix pouts slightly, “Aww, that means he won’t be back until dinner… You guys won’t meet my hyung yet,” He tells the rest, “Minho-hyung was meeting the other people in the left wing then he likes to go rot in the dance studio nearby, so you won’t see him for a few hours.”

 

“Sounds exactly like someone I know,” Changbin drawls. 

 

Jisung eyes him, “Like you’re not one to do the same?”

 

“You were the one that spent the whole day in your bedroom because you hated the beat -”   
  


“Don’t tell me you never do the same -”

 

“I think you’d get along with Minho-hyung very well,” Felix says loudly over all of them squabbling about Jisung’s habits of holing himself up, “He once spent the whole day at the dance studio and forgot to eat when he was preparing for his final showcase.”

 

“Showcase?” Jisung asks, interest piqued.

 

“Yeah! Minho-hyung’s a dancer, he took a degree in - Performing Arts or something like that, the fancy title is so long. He just graduated a few weeks ago after his final showcase.” 

 

“Is he the same age as Channie then?” Woojin asks. 

 

Felix cocks his head. “Mm - I don’t think so - I think hyung’s a year younger since Channie-hyung’s course took four years, didn’t it? Yeah - Minho-hyung’s course was three years, so he graduated earlier.” 

 

“Oh - Are we here?” Jeongin pipes up suddenly, staring out the window with wide eyes, “It’s such a pretty resort!”

 

It’s true. The resort isn’t glass and chrome with a huge pool dominating its facade; rather, it consists of one large, airy pavilion in the centre that opens to the reception, and walkways interlink the pavilion to two wings consisting of interconnecting huts. It’s as warm and cozy as can be, with a wonderful homely feel to it due to the use of wood and glass rather than plain concrete alone. 

 

They unload from the van, staring in awe at the resort. “I forgot Jeonginnie never came here before,” Chan says, laughing sheepishly, looking around the resort with a sense of nostalgia, “The last time I came here… It must have been way back in middle school.” 

 

“Let’s get you guys in,” Felix’s eomma says, “You guys must be starving - it’s over lunchtime, but there are a lot of coffee shops nearby, unless you want to eat in the in-house restaurant.” 

 

“We’ll go exploring a bit,” Chan says after discussing it with everyone, “I’m sure we can find something to eat while we’re out. Oh - are rooms are this way?” They follow Felix, who’s dangling their room keys from his fingers, to the left wing. At the end of the corridor is a small space with paved cobblestones and a garden-esque space that leads to a few huts clustered around it. 

 

“Here we are!” Felix says, “It’s two to three people to a hut, and these are yours,” He points to two huts on their right and hands the keys over to Chan, “The keys have labels that match the huts’ name, so don’t worry about mixing them up. Be careful to keep the keys carefully though.” Then he gestures to the other two huts available, “Seungmin and Hyunjin live in that hut - we can go see them later, and Minho-hyung might still be there if we’re lucky,” He points to the last hut with an air of finality, “That’s where Minho-hyung and I are staying too! My eomma said we could stay there instead of upstairs for a change since she’s giving you guys free reign to what’s half of the left wing.” 

 

“Wow -” Woojin breathes, taking in the tranquility and coziness of the huts, “This is amazing!” 

 

“It really is,” Jisung says, eyes wide as he observes where they’ll be staying for the next three weeks, “Chan-hyung never said it was so pretty!” 

 

Felix giggles shyly, clasping his hands together behind his back, “It is, though I’ve gotten used to it, seeing it everyday,” He says he’ll wait outside for them, so Chan gives a key to Changbin. 

 

“Should we split up like this?” Jisung asks, pointing at himself and Changbin, leaving Woojin, Chan and Jeongin to share a room. 

 

“Drawing lots is fairer,” Jeongin points out. 

 

“Let's all turn around and go into whichever hut we like better one by one,” Woojin suggests. 

 

“Okay, babe.” 

 

“Stop being gross -”

 

“Turn around, guys and close your eyes!”

 

“Guess I'll go first...” Jeongin says as they spin around obediently at Chan’s command. Glancing between the two huts, they aren't much different apart from the fact that one hut has ivy growing over it - Woojin would love that hut, he thinks. And where Woojin goes, Chan is sure to follow. 

 

Therefore, not wanting to play the part of third-wheeler for the umpteenth time, Jeongin chooses the other hut that's been decorated with murals instead and steps in. Behind him, he can hear Felix telling them he's chosen his hut. 

 

The hut is as cozy and warm as it looks like from the outside. There are even murals painted across the walls of the small living area, and two screen doors lead to what he presumes are two bedrooms. He's so busy taking in the loveliness of the hut that he doesn't move from the entryway of the front door and someone opens said door, banging right into him. 

 

“Ohmygod - Jeongin - shit, Chan-hyung’s going to  _ kill _ me.” 

 

It's Jisung. “It's okay,” Jeongin says, wincing slightly as he slides out of harm's way, “I was standing in the entrance anyway. So it's you and me? Is Changbin-hyung joining us?”

 

“Nah,” Jisung says once he's sure Jeongin is fine, “He chose the house with ivy and now he's stuck third-wheeling Chan-hyung and Woojin-hyung for three weeks,” They both snicker at the thought of Changbin whining endlessly about how grossly in love the couple are. 

 

“Guys, come on out,” Changbin’s low drawl startles them, “Felix wants us to meet the other people staying in the same wing as us, don't keep him waiting.” 

 

Leaving their luggage in the living room to be dealt with later, Jeongin and Jisung both take a key to the main door each before exiting. “Don't get your panties in a twist, hyung. ” Jisung mutters as he makes eye contact with Changbin, “I think I know your summer crush from two years ago,” He adds in a low voice, “The guy you wouldn’t tell us about - it’s Felix, isn’t it?” 

 

Changbin splutters, turning red faster than Jisung has ever seen before, “I - I - I never -” At Jisung’s arched eyebrow, he relents slightly, “I mean - You’re right,” He sighs, admitting defeat, “Yeah - just - don’t tell anyone, I don’t wanna make this holiday awkward for everyone.”

 

As far as Jisung is concerned, he feels that Felix is as taken with Changbin as the other way around, but it’s not his place to comment on other people’s relationship status and what they choose to do about said non-existent relationship status, so he obediently shuts up and they wait for everyone to gather around Felix. 

 

“I feel like a kindergarten teacher,” Felix says, “Shooing all the children who don’t know where to go.” He leads them across the garden space to another hut with carved motifs etched into the wood and knocks on the door, “Guys? I wanna introduce you to my cousins!” 

 

There’s barely a few seconds before a guy opens the door - a guy who is Very Tall and has Flaming Red Hair, though paired with his sweet, soft features, he looks more like a cherry than anything. “Hi, Felix,” He says, “Hyunjinnie’s in the shower - oh, are these the people Minho-hyung said were coming over?”

 

Felix frowns slightly and Jisung’s eyebrows shoots into his hairline when he sees Changbin make an instinctive move towards Felix only to stop himself. “Does that mean he’s not here anymore? Ah… I was hoping to catch him, but never mind, it’ll be dinner then! Can we come in?”

 

“Of course!” 

 

Inside, they find that instead of a living room and two bedrooms, there are two rooms of equal size, the living room and a bedroom with two beds. They can hear the shower running, just as the guy said. As they pile into the living room, Felix starts chattering to Seungmin amiably. 

 

“Yeah, Channie-hyung’s my cousin and he just graduated university. Jeonginnie’s his younger brother so he’s my cousin too and he just graduated high school,” Felix starts pointing everyone out to Seungmin, who’s nodding rapidly, “Woojin-hyung is Chan-hyung’s boyfriend and he’s working in a - yeah, in a cafe part time because he’s actually a really good singer! And that’s Changbin-hyungie, he’s in his last year, and Jisung’s our year. Everyone, this is Seungmin -” They turn at the sound of someone shuffling into the room, “ - and that’s Hyunjin. I hope you guys get along for this holiday, since you’re all staying together for the next three weeks!” 

 

Hyunjin, who’s just walked in, looks slightly punch-drunk with his wet, messy hair and Seungmin sighs fondly from where he’s seated. 

 

“Hi, go dry your hair, Jinnie, I’ll let you know who they are -”   
  


Hyunjin leans down to peck Seungmin’s lips before collapsing into the seat beside him without much fuss, “Hey to you too, baby. It’s pretty hot to be using a hairdryer and I don’t care,” Ignoring Seungmin’s protests that he might fall sick, he slips an arm around Seungmin’s waist, “Who’re you guys? Ah - Felix! Who - wait, are these the people Minho-hyung was talking about?” 

 

Felix nods, and they go around the introductions again with Seungmin this time, who picks everyone out correctly. “By the way, have you guys eaten lunch?” Felix asks, “They’re gonna go explore and find somewhere to eat - do you guys wanna tag along?”

 

Seungmin and Hyunjin exchange a look before shrugging. “Yeah, we could,” Hyunjin says, “We kinda - forgot to eat? Minho-hyung was with us and we were talking dance and time slipped past us -”

 

“Honestly,” Chan says, eyeing the couple, “You guys are exactly like Changbin and Jisung. They don’t know if they’re hungry until someone asks them,” He adds when Seungmin directs a curious look at him. 

 

“Don’t go adopting any more kids,” Woojin says amusedly as they leave the hut, watching Chan fuss over Seungmin and Hyunjin, who take it all in their stride, “Promise me you won’t come back to my apartment shouting about another kid, please? Don’t you enough kids to fuss over including your own brother and cousins?” 

 

“Does he actually go around adopting everyone?” Hyunjin asks as they walk out the main reception area into the streets. 

 

“With Woojin-hyung’s permission,” Jisung says out of the corner of his mouth, “He fusses over us in lieu of having Jisung to fuss over since he boards at university - well, he used to until last year. He stays over at Woojin-hyung’s apartment very often,” He turns to Chan, who’s talking to Jeongin and asks, “Hey, hyung, are you moving in Woojin-hyung? Is Jeonginnie moving in with us? We have an extra room, after all…” 

 

Looking up, Chan glances over at Woojin. “Why not,” Woojin says in an even voice, “You have to pay rent and everything, but it’s good exchange for my company, isn’t it?” 

 

“Watch them get even more gross,” Jeongin says, making a face, “And I’ll move in with you guys if I can get in.” 

 

“You’ll get in, kid,” Changbin assures him, “You have potential, the university won’t let that go to waste. You’ve decided on what course you want, right?” 

 

Jeongin hums affirmatively, “Yeah, I’ll be preparing to apply this summer while I’m here,” They turn a corner onto smooth pavement with small shops lining them. 

 

“There’s a really nice cafe down here,” Felix says, having not listened to a word of their conversation, and for some reason was blushing to the tips of his ears, “I mean - it’s nice but -”   
  


“Oh,” Seungmin interrupts loudly, now grinning widely, “Is it the cafe with  _ that  _ auntie? The one that likes to tease you about -”

 

“Yeah,” Felix finishes hurriedly, “I - I know the auntie who runs the cafe and she’s really nice and the food is amazing so - so do you guys wanna go? There are plenty of restaurants around here, of course - I mean - I’m not forcing you guys, it’s just a suggestion -” 

 

“I’d like to go. You like the cake here, don’t you?” Changbin says warmly, touching Felix’s hand briefly. That alone settles everything. 

 

Felix looks like he’s struggling with words and momentarily, spits out something in English that startles all of them. 

 

“Translate?” Jisung asks Chan, who looks like he’s having severe constipation. While Jisung is somewhat proficient in English, he can, for the life of him, understand Felix’s Australian slang, and his accent gets thicker when he’s nervous - especially in situations like this. 

 

“He said we should go before it’s too late and that we must be hungry,” Chan says. 

 

“Uhuh,” Jisung says a little disbelievingly. He’s sure he heard the words, ‘ _ nice _ ’, ‘ _ Changbin-hyung _ ’ and ‘ _ remember _ ’, but if Chan is covering for Felix, then he won’t push it any further. They follow Felix down the street and turn into a smaller side street, where they’re greeted by a chalk sign board with the day’s specialties lovingly handwritten on it. They file in, pushing the wooden door open and they’re greeted with the sight of white wooden tables and chairs, exposed brick walls and a concrete bar. It gives the cafe a vintage yet contemporary feel to it, though the warm lighting gives the whole cafe a definite cozy atmosphere to it. 

 

“It’s really nice,” Chan says admiringly for a while, then turns on Felix, “You never brought me and Jeonginnie here before!”

 

Felix squeaks a little and moves further into the cafe. Changbin tells Chan to shut it. Chan starts wailing about him never having raised such rude kids. 

 

“What do you guys wanna eat?” Woojin asks them, like Chan isn’t wailing in his ear about their parenting abilities. He calmly turns a page in the menu and reaches over to the bread basket to pick up a bun and shoves it in Chan’s mouth. “I love you and everything, Channie, but accept that our kids are going to grow up. You have Seungmin and Hyunjin to baby, at any rate.” 

 

Seungmin and Hyunjin immediately make themselves scarce.

 

“The spaghetti is really nice,” Felix says in a voice that’s too high for his usual deep pitch, “I - I -”

 

“You like the pesto, don’t you,” Changbin states offhandedly, “You always ate it last time…” 

 

They spend their lunch like that, Felix a stuttering mess of words as he blurts out random sentences in English and Jisung starts thinking that Changbin is not subtle. Like, at all. It doesn’t improve when the owner of the cafe - the auntie Felix mentioned earlier - and starts talking to Felix about what’s apparently a common topic for them.

 

“No - auntie - not right now,” Felix hisses, trying to get her to stop. 

 

“What? Are these your friends? You should tell them, maybe they know something about your -”   
  


“ _ Auntie _ !” Felix cries.

 

“I’ll bet you 10,000 won we know what they’re talking about,” Seungmin says under his breath, “Neither of them are trying to hide it,” He glances up innocently when Felix whips his head around suspiciously and takes another mouthful of Hyunjin’s spaghetti, studiously ignoring his own sandwich.

 

“I don’t know why you order the sandwich when you’re eating most of my food,” Hyunjin says, even as he picks up Seungmin’s half-eaten sandwich. 

 

“Everyone’s so grossly in love and there’s us,” Jeongin mutters, looking dispassionately at the two couples and Changbin, who’s busy pretending he can’t hear a word of their conversation. 

 

Jisung makes a false whack at Jeongin. “I’m in love with my music, so you can go rot by yourself.” 

 

“Traitor,” Jeongin says, stealing a piece of meat from Jisung’s plate. 

 

Jisung tips two more pieces onto Jeongin’s plate. After all, bribery gets you everywhere.

 

* * *

 

As it turns out, bribery is the only thing that prevents Jeongin from dumping a bucket of cold water on Jisung to wake him up the next morning. “Small miracles,” Jisung grumbles, half-awake. 

 

“At least I didn’t blast the airhorn,” Jeongin says wryly, “I had to do that the last time Channie-hyung couldn’t wake up.”

 

“Small fucking miracles,” Jisung repeats with a curse, always more prone to accidentally cursing when he’s not in full brain capacity.

 

“Language,” Chan says as he bounds in through their door, having clearly heard every single word of their conversation from the living room.

 

“What are you doing here,” Jisung complains, shuffling blearily eyed into the bathroom to brush his teeth. 

 

“We’re going exploring today!” Woojin inserts with a little laugh, “Since we had an early night yesterday you should have enough energy to go exploring, shouldn’t you?” He has to bite back a laugh at the mutinous look at Jisung’s face, all accompanied by a foaming mouth and toothbrush. Jisung is so busy scowling in Woojin’s general direction that he doesn’t even notice Jeongin taking a photo him (for future blackmail purposes, of course). 

 

“ _ Don’t _ look at Woojin like that,” Chan says with something like warning in his voice. 

 

“Calm down, lover boy,” Changbin says from behind him, face concealed by his mug of water, “You’re reeking of protectiveness and it’s stinking the hut up,” He almost chokes on his gulp of water when a soft giggle sounds from the front door beside him. 

 

It’s Felix, who has just walked in - they had left the door open, like idiots - and he had heard all of Changbin’s little monologue and found it funny. Sometimes Jisung wonders if Changbin knows he’s being obvious. 

 

Last night, after Felix had bid them goodbye, Chan and Jisung had all but kidnapped Changbin, grilling him about how and when he knew Felix. Eventually, after much persistence, he had admitted that Felix was his crush from two summers ago, and that he had come to the same town for his summer, though he stayed in another resort. 

 

“He was what - 16?” Changbin had said, “We weren’t ready to start anything, but we hung out a long… We were really good friends,” He catches the look on Jisung’s face and snorts, “What? We were! That’s why I know stuff about him - like just now, at the cafe. I wasn’t expecting to meet him again.”

 

“What’re you gonna do?” Chan says suddenly, unexpectedly serious. 

 

Changbin looks alarmed. “What? Do what? I’m not going to do anything -”

 

“Not even when the feeling’s mutual?” Chan takes one look at Changbin’s expression - concern, distrust and hope all weaved together into distress and continues, “Look, I’ve known Felix since he was young and he isn’t one to hide a lot of things… I’ve never heard about this summer adventure that you guys had until now - I don’t think he wanted to get his hopes up in case I knew you - wait did he mention me at all?”   
  


Changbin shrugs. “He said he had an older cousin in their second year of university, but we never talked much about family.” 

 

“Okay,” Chan says, satisfied, “But have you even looked at Felix properly? He couldn’t talk to you properly throughout dinner at all.”

 

“He was worried because his hyung didn’t turn up,” Changbin says, denying it. 

 

“For the first 10 minutes before Minho called,” Chan says fairly, “He spent the rest of dinner not looking at you and staring at his chicken instead.”

 

Changbin stares at the curtains for a while. “Whatever,” He eventually gripes out, “I’ll see.”

 

And  _ I’ll see _ evidently means  _ I’m going to start courting my summer boyfriend from two years ago _ which is why everyone is subjected to Changbin fussing around getting Felix to sit down and asking him if he wants anything to drink as soon as he recovers from Felix’s sudden appearance. 

 

“Oh, no -” Felix waves his hand, looking supremely flustered, “ - It’s okay, we’re going to have breakfast upstairs,” Then he catches Changbin’s expression and tacks on, “But only because - I mean - what I’m - hyung, I mean -”

 

“It’s okay,” Changbin says, relieving Felix’s stuttered explanation, “You don’t need to accept everything I wanna do for you.” 

 

“Oh,” Felix says, a pleased blush rising high on his cheeks, “Thanks, hyungie. I’ll take you up on your offer next time,” He returns Changbin’s smile. 

 

Right at that moment, Hyunjin bursts into their hut, swinging his head wildly. “I’m - wait, did I interrupt something?”

 

“Only Felix and his courter,” Seungmin says from behind Hyunjin. 

 

“Sorry,” Hyunjin says sheepishly, “But Felix, we were looking for you. Minho-hyung just texted the group chat to say that he wants us at the studio after breakfast but you don’t need to go if you’re taking the group around sightseeing,”

 

“ _ I forgot to check the chat _ ,” Felix yelps, diving for his phone deep in his bag, “Yeah - okay. I’ll meet you guys… before lunch? I have enough time to take them to the beach and leave them in town, since the studio is on the way, and we can all go back together.” 

 

“Actually,” Seungmin pipes up, “Minho-hyung needs to come back to help at 2 since the weekend’s over already, did you forget? So it’ll just be us going back with the rest.” 

 

Felix almost hits his head on the coffee table. “ _ I keep forgetting _ .” He hisses to himself mostly, before he composes himself, “Yep, I forgot - eomma said I had this week off because I’d be guiding my friends around,” He turns and explains to them that both him and Minho help out in the resort during the holidays, while Hyunjin and Seungmin work some nights at a local coffee shop. “You’ll be seeing me serve you breakfast next week in uniform and everything,” Felix says, looking slightly appalled. 

 

“Is that a chance to order you around?” Jeongin says, always the opportunist. 

 

Felix scowls at him before turning back to Hyunjin and Seungmin. “So you guys aren’t coming with us around town? Does Minho-hyung want any breakfast? He holed up himself in the dance studio the whole last night and he isn’t hungry? I smell lies.” 

 

“We’ll get some food for him,” Hyunjin says. 

 

“Let’s get him all the food he doesn’t like,” Seungmin says, “He needs to be taught a lesson about taking care of himself.”

 

“I’m dating a genius,” Hyunjin declares loudly before drawing in Seungmin for a kiss. 

 

“I’m starving,” Jisung says to the ceiling as they give the couple a good thirty seconds of privacy. 

 

“Let’s go!” Felix says with forced cheer, staring at the carpet. 

 

After Jisung locks the door behind him and shoves the keys into his pocket, they make their way to the main reception area and taking the winding stairs on both sides of the reception upstairs to a public seating area and through a set of double doors is a wide airy dining area where breakfast is being served. The few people in there are being served by staff, and the large windows give a view of the beach right next to it. 

 

Jisung squints out the window. “Was a wooden pier here before?” He points at the nearest end of the beach, looking at it suspiciously. 

 

Felix throws him a calculating glance. “Yeah, there was one about five years ago. They scrapped it because a new one was built on the other side of the island. How did you know?” 

 

“Dunno, I guessed,” Jisung says vaguely. 

 

“Right,” Felix says, not believing Jisung in the slightest, “Sit down and I’ll get you guys your food. We’re only a small resort, so it’s easier for us to take orders instead of do a buffet-style breakfast and waste a lot,” He explains hastily when Woojin opens his mouth in confusion. 

 

So they take turns to order what they want from the menus Felix obtains and they get to witness a professional Felix taking their orders and directing a very confused guest to the bathroom. “No, sir,” He says patiently after dropping their orders off in the kitchen at the back, “It’s that way - here, I’ll take you.” 

 

“What, do you take me for an idiot?” The guest says angrily, taking immediate offence at the offer for some reason. 

 

“No,” Felix says as placatingly as he can, “I just thought -”

 

“Well you thought wrong then, didn’t you?”

 

“I did,” Felix says resignedly, rapidly recognising when he should give up, “Sir, it’s  _ that  _ way, not there -” 

 

“I can make it on my own,” The guest snaps, “You gave me the wrong directions before,” And he stalks off predatorily in the direction Felix had pointed out three times previously. 

 

“Never got someone so angry in the morning this early before,” Felix says, breathing out a long sigh as he stands by their table, “Man, if Minho-hyung had to deal with this guy… He’d be chewed out and thrown out of the resort in a heartbeat.” 

 

“I would pay good money to see that,” Hyunjin says immediately. 

 

A bell chimes and Felix disappears into the back. He comes out bearing four plates like it’s nothing and sets each one down with all the grace of royalty before fetching the rest. “I like balancing things and it makes for quicker servings,” He says when Changbin says something along the lines of  _ how do you do that _ . “Alright, everyone, dig in!” 

 

The food really is delicious, and they’re hungry, so it’s gone without 10 minutes and Felix takes it upon himself to get them seconds as soon as they polish their first helpings off. “No, that’s enough,” Chan says weakly, “Lix, I’m full.” Woojin’s eating whatever’s left off his plate. 

 

“Here, give me that,” Hyunjin says, making grabby hands at the plate of scrambled eggs and sausages, “I’ll pack it for hyung. God knows he should be starving by now since he forgot dinner,” 

 

“I’ll get you a container,” Felix says. 

 

This scene seems familiar to the three of them. “Do you guys go to a university around here?”Chan asks. 

 

“Oh, yeah,” Seungmin says distractedly as he tips milk into a thermos, “Our homes are here, in town, but we go to the university just in the next city over - it’s about 15 minutes by train.”

 

“Done,” Hyunjin declares, closing the lid of the tupperware, “Why hyung never learns I’ll never know. Are you ready, Minnie?” 

 

“It’s because we take care of him and he has nothing to lose,” Felix says wisely, “Wait till hyung has something to cherish more than his dancing and you’ll see how he acts.”

 

“Minho-hyung’s first love is dance,” Seungmin says in agreement. 

 

Felix collects the plates and deposits them in the kitchen before they head down to the main reception area, all feeling slightly bloated with extremely good food. “Eomma!” Felix trills happily when he sees her manning the reception desk, “Hi,” He leans over the counter for an affectionate hug as she greets the rest of them over the top of his head, “Did hyung call you at all? He’s still in the studio.” 

 

“Yea,” Hyunjin chimes in, “Do we have your express permission to drag the idiot back here today?” 

 

“He needs to come back to work after lunch anyway,” She says, “But give him all the lectures you want. Also, tell him I send my amused but resigned disappointment.” 

 

Hyunjin and Seungmin part with them at the entrance, taking a right turn straight into town after bidding them goodbye and promising to meet up with them later. Felix leads them straight down a quiet street then gestures for them to turn into a small side street. “This is how to get to the beach if you’re outside the resort - if you’re in the resort you can get to the beach by the archway straightaway,” He explains as the tarmac beneath their feet gradually turns into hard-packed sand. “Here we are!” 

 

The beach is fairly empty, since it’s only around half past seven, and it really is pretty. The pale sand glints golden beneath the glare of the morning sun, and the turquoise waters come up to their feet, playfully sending small waves of cool water up to splash them; it’s the perfect vision of a tranquil paradise. “Also,” Felix adds as they stroll down the beach, “You should be careful that end,” He points towards the furthest end of the beach where they can only make out an expanse of sand, “The waves are rougher there and there are sharp rocks that side. Try to stay this end if you’re going barefoot, but if you’re wearing shoes it’s fine.”   
  


Set on the beach, far from the waves are a series of pavilions with two to three picnic tables inside each of them, well-worn with use and the weather. “Picnic tables,” Felix supplies needlessly, “The tourists really like them, and you can buy food from some shops just around here to eat.”

 

“What are those?” Woojin asks, indicating towards two pavilions markedly different from the rest - while the ones Felix mentioned were wooden and straw-thatched, giving it a rustic charm, these were white and black, with concrete floors, actual sofas and cushions and small lamps hung around the perimeter of the roof. 

 

“Those belong to that restaurant,” Felix says, “They’re like couple booths or something, I dunno, I’ve never been in one of those.” 

 

Jisung resists the strong urge to drop hints to Changbin. 

 

“The beach’s done!” Felix exclaims with a little hop - Changbin almost says something like  _ you’re so cute please stop it before I combust _ \- and turns to them, eyes shining just as brightly as the sparkle of the golden sands, “Do you guys wanna go into town now or stay here for a while? We still have some time before I have to go see them at the studio… Maybe three hours?” 

 

“Let’s stay for a while, please?” Jeongin asks, “It’s so nice this early, with no one around.”

 

They end up playing on the beach for a good hour or more, doing nothing but running back and forth between each greeting of the waves and away from each other when Jisung decides to initiate a small water-fight. “I’ll get you back,” Changbin vows when Jisung tips a handful of water into his hair, “Watch your sleep tonight, brat.” 

 

“Gotcha!” Chan says happily as he tackles Woojin into the sand, “You’re it!” He laughs and sprints off, a game of ‘it’ now added to the water-fight. 

 

Eventually, sweaty but satisfied, they move into the shade of one of the pavilions and collapse onto the benches. Felix suggests that they go to the mall to cool off, and they agree. “It’s only five minutes away - oh, also, it’s nothing big, not as the ones you can get in the cities, but it’s enough, and the food court has great snacks if you wanna eat lunch there later.” 

 

They arrive at the entrance of a modest-looking mall, relieved to feel air-conditioning against their sweat-damp skin, and they wander around the first few floors of the mall, chatting unconcernedly about anything. “What time is it?” Chan suddenly asks as they munch on crepes, “Is it time, Felix?”   
  


“Um -” Felix hurriedly checks his phone and bites hard into his crepe, “Yeah - it’s almost 11 - I have to go guys!” He gives them a quick goodbye and tells them he’ll come back to meet them along with Seungmin and Hyunjin later before rushing off. 

 

“You’re staring, lover-boy,” Jisung sings. Changbin is  _ indeed _ staring after Felix, who is now a pale orange blob of hair and a smatter of dark clothes as he runs out the mall entrance in a blur. Turning, he scowls at Jisung, though he doesn’t deny it. 

 

“Let’s go rot and see how much food we can buy before going broke,” Jeongin suggests. 

 

“Chicken!” Woojin says immediately, “I saw a stall selling chicken - let’s  _ go _ -”

 

* * *

 

“So we’re just changing the bridge?” Hyunjin asks once again, “The rest is all the same?”

 

Minho nods emphatically. “Yeah, the rest will remain the same. We can work on synchronising the bridge the next time we meet up since we don’t need to teach it until the summer is over.” 

 

“Is this the reason you stayed over last night?” Seungmin asks, belly down on the floor and watching them. 

 

Minho gives a nervous laugh. “Uh - Maybe?” He slides just out of arm’s reach from Seungmin so the other can’t smack him, but he’s forgotten about Hyunjin. “ _ Ack _ \- Hyun _ jin _ nie -” 

 

“I hope you learnt your lesson,” Hyunjin says severely, holding Minho down in a headlock, “Next time we’re really not going to bring food for you and you can melt in here and we’ll bury you as a puddle of human,” He lets go of Minho, who falls to the floor dramatically. “Felix should be here about now -”

 

“Hyungie!” A loud shout from the entrance is heard then Minho’s arms are full of a squirming Felix. 

 

“Hi, Lixie,” Minho says, a little breathless and starts peppering Felix’s hair with butterfly kisses, “Haven’t seen you for a day, have I?” Felix nods in his embrace and Minho hugs back a little bit harder. “Didn’t think you’d miss me,” Minho laughs a little, pinching Felix’s cheeks, “Hmm? What happened that made you miss me? What have I missed? Did my baby brother meet someone, hmm?” 

 

“You’re not far off,” Seungmin says. 

 

Minho sits up abruptly, Felix tensing in his arms. “What?” He gasps, holding Felix by the shoulders to look at him in the eyes, “You met someone? Who is it? Is it the group of friends Chan-hyung and Jeongin brought over? There’s no one to like in our town,” 

 

Felix is blushing to the tips of his ears. “You remember, hyung?” He starts off, voice weak, “Two years ago? I told you about the guy I met right? Yeah… apparently he’s one of Channie-hyung’s friends, and he came and - and he remembered me,” His voice tapers off into nothing and he looks away from Minho. “Hyung - Hyung I thought I forgot him since it’s been so long but - but I don’t understand why - why I still like him so much.” 

 

Minho observes Felix thoughtfully, his fatigue momentarily forgotten in the wake of Felix’s more pressing needs. “You know, it’s okay to like someone again, as long as they treat you well, Lix,” He starts off, trying to express his feelings, “It’s fine for you to have a crush on him again even after this long - liking someone isn’t a crime unless you go about doing illegal things in the hopes that your crush will like you back, of course.”

 

“Hyung!” Felix cries, “I’m not going to - blackmail Changbin-hyung into liking me or something!” 

 

“You don’t need to,” Hyunjin says, “He already likes you. I haven’t even known Changbin-hyung for two days but I can see he’s so weak for you.”

 

“Oh yeah, he’s whipped for you,” Seungmin agrees, “You could ask him to bring you the moon and he’d bring the sun and the stars as well.”

 

“Interesting,” Minho muses, patting the top of Felix’s head affectionately, “I can’t wait to meet your friends. Well, I have to go soon, let’s try to get the bridge down!” 

 

* * *

 

If one ever asked Jisung what his dearest wish was, it would be able to get decent sleep so he wouldn’t feel half-dead in the mornings. 

 

Besides, Jisung’s never done well when he has to sleep in a new, unfamiliar environment. He suspects that the only reason he slept through the first night was because he was dead tired from the journey and now that he’s not dying to slump over the nearest softest surface and pass the fuck out, he  _ can’t sleep _ . Though it’s not like the resort has anything to do with his discomfort - the bed is soft, the pillow softer and his open window brings a cool breeze that would have been lovely if he was actually able to sleep. 

 

Jeongin is in the other room, presumably asleep - Jisung’s never heard him complaining of being unable to sleep, and he doesn’t want to disturb the other. Chancing a glance at his phone, he stifles an irritated curse. It’s nearly four in the morning and they’re supposed to be up by seven. There’s no way he’s going back to sleep in this state. 

 

Carefully, he sits up and pushes the thin blankets off, grabbing his phone and shrugging a coat on before slipping out his bedroom door. He peeks into Jeongin’s room - the younger is sleeping though his covers have slipped off; satisfied that Jeongin is okay, he steps out of their hut, taking one set of keys with him. 

 

In this still air, neither morning nor night, an inexplicable sense of freedom comes to Jisung unexpectedly. There’s no one around him that he needs to talk to and nothing he has to do in this hour that seems to stretch longer than most hours. 

 

Following the small archway out of the cluster of huts, he finds himself on the same beach Felix had introduced to all of them yesterday. Sparse lamplights light up the length of the beach so he follows the arc of light that they throw over the sand. The beach appears calmer during the night, though Jisung knows it’s only caused by the lack of people mulling around the beach. The waves wash up gently on the beach, still a distance away from where he’s walking on dry sand, and the cool breeze he felt in his room is stronger out here, carding soft fingers through his hair and making his jacket flap lightly. 

 

Jisung’s alone here, with only the light casting a golden sheen on the sand to show him the way and the whoosh of the waves and wind to keep him silent company. He thinks he prefers the beach at this time; it  _ is _ beautiful in daylight’s glory, with turquoise waters and sparkling sands, but like this, in the half-darkness, he can hear the waves unmuted by shrieks of laughter, can see the inky tone of the sea that melds into the sky, can feel the coolness of the sand beneath his feet. 

 

Entirely absorbed in his surroundings, Jisung doesn’t notice he’s drawing closer and closer to a pavilion until he spies a figure moving out of the corner of his eyes. It’s by sheer willpower that he doesn’t scream. Glancing around, he realises he must have come more than half-way down the beach, the pavilion too small for it to be a tourist attraction, and he’s sure he’s already passed the pavilions that hold the picnic tables that the tourists like to fight over. 

 

No, this pavilion is smaller, and by the dim glow of the only lamp in it, looks older than the rest with how discoloured the wooden pillars look. There’s someone in there too, but Jisung can’t tell who is it. The figure is standing facing the ocean in the pavilion’s entrance, away from Jisung - the lamplight is opposite the figure, and so Jisung can’t tell who they are. 

 

Deciding he’s probably intruding on their alone time, he starts to back away, but then that figure stretches so gently, arms raised and on their tiptoes that Jisung freezes, afraid that he’ll be caught even if he hasn’t made a sound and he’s in a patch of darkness. Then he’s totally frozen for a different reason.

 

The figure spins slowly, making their way back into the centre, and as the lamplight throws their features into vague relief, Jisung sees that it’s a guy, and his eyes are closed and - 

 

He’s extremely beautiful. 

 

As in, he doesn’t just have pretty features, but he realises the guy has started to dance to a melody Jisung can’t hear and - and his dancing is  _ ethereal _ . 

 

Floored, Jisung can’t keep his eyes off the guy, watching the smooth movements and fluid transitions. At some point, he has danced his way around the pavilion, the light casting shapes across his body like a shadow play. Though he’s entranced, Jisung still tries to put a beat to the guy’s dancing, old habits deeply ingrained in him, and as each incoming wave that he hears is accentuated with a more forceful pose, Jisung starts placing the beat to his dancing.

 

The guy is dancing to the waves. 

 

Each swash is accompanied by flashier moves, then he eases into softer movements as the waves wash back out, and the cycle continues. It’s like watching a freestyle unlike any other; the only music here is the melody of the ocean and the harmonies of the wind, yet the unknown guy seems to utterly familiar with it, greeting each break of the waves like an old friend as his body slides into the next pose with natural ease. 

 

Jisung’s mouth is dry. He’s composed songs for dancers - for friends of his; he’s even danced to some of his self-composed tracks because why not,  _ yet  _ \- he wants to write songs, hundreds of them, for this guy who he doesn’t even know and has never met before. The wisps of a melody starts to form in his head, inspiration grasping him tightly - he wants to use the ocean, the sand, the wind as his backing track, wants to see how this stranger would dance to it, if the song that’s starting to emerge in him will be as beautiful, as raw as what he’s witnessing. 

 

Abruptly, the figure stops, and Jisung hears heavy breathing. “It really is so pretty now,” Jisung hears the guy murmur above the lull of the waves, and as he starts to turn around, Jisung panics. 

 

_ Fuck, fuck, he’s going to see me, I’m gonna be caught, Han Jisung you can’t creep on people like this _ -

 

“Hey - is someone there?” The guy asks suddenly, moving closer into the lamplight, squinting vaguely at Jisung’s hiding spot.

 

Jisung turns tail and follows the edges of the darkness and skims closer to the waves to stay out of the pathway of light. He puts space between himself and the pavilion rapidly, but when he turns back once, he can see the outline of the guy some ways away, and he speeds up, breaking into a run. 

 

Yet he still hears the stranger speak, his words carrying over the ocean and aided by the wind. “ _ Are you from the resort _ ?” He looks back once again and he sees the guy’s silhouette framed by the lamplights, looking like a glowing halo against the dark backdrop, and it’s hard not to associate the stranger with being an angel now that Jisung sees this.

 

_ Yes _ , Jisung says in his mind,  _ yes I’m from the resort and I’m sorry for being a creep but your dancing was so beautiful and I wanna write a song for you to dance to  _ \- 

 

Jisung runs a little bit faster. 

 

* * *

 

“Hyung - what are you doing up so early?” Jeongin asks sleepily when his alarm goes off at seven sharp. He’s just stumbled into the small living area where Jisung is camping out with his laptop and a notebook he uses to write lyrics. 

 

“Ah - you’re up,” Jisung says a little too brightly, “I... I couldn’t sleep so I decided to get up early and come out here. The view is nice and I thought I might get inspiration for something.”

 

Jeongin peers blearily at the cramped words on paper before shuffling into the shared bathroom, “Seems like you got it, hyung. That’s a lot of lyrics - did you write a whole new song or something?” 

 

Jisung gives a noncommittal grunt that could mean anything and picks up his pen again, staring critically between the lyrics and his laptop screen. Playing another demo of a different beat, he frowns at his lyrics, wondering how he would go about trying to create a song to reflect the beauty he saw. Deep in thought, he almost lets the incoming call on his phone go to voicemail.

 

Almost.

 

“Hyung!” Jisung says hurriedly, having picked up on the last ring, “What - What’s wrong?” 

 

“ _ Wow - You’re actually so early for once, I wasn’t expecting for you to pick up, I’m impressed _ .”

 

“Whatever Chan-hyung,” Jisung grumbles. 

 

“ _ It’s not an insult if it’s true _ ,” Chan says airily, “ _ Anyway, I called you because we agreed to all go out for breakfast, in case you forgot. Felix already left with Seungmin and Hyunjin and he texted me the address already. Get ready in half an hour _ !” 

 

“You’re too chirpy for the morning,” Jisung says suspiciously, squinting at his laptop screen in lieu for actually squinting at Chan, “What did you do? Pour red bull into your coffee?”

 

“ _ Excitement, Jisungie _ ,” Chan corrects loudly, then adds in a low voice, “ _ And also Woojin makes really good coffee. If you get ready in 20 minutes I can save you a cup _ ,” It’s pure bribery, but Chan prides himself on knowing Jisung well, so he isn’t in the slightest bit perturbed when the phone abruptly cuts off and he laughs. Bribery runs within the family.

 

He just isn’t expecting a loud knock on his door barely a minute later with an accompanying shout of, “Coffee, hyung!” 

 

Chan must be dreaming. Opening the door, he’s greeted with a somewhat groomed Jisung who looks like he hasn’t slept at all. His parental instincts are red flagging everything from Jisung’s dark circles to his pale, tired expression and the ink stains on his fingers. “Have you been up all night writing again?” Chan asks, eyes narrowing imperceptibly. 

 

Jisung gives a nervous giggle. “Um - I couldn’t sleep and - and I decided to spend my time writing lyrics instead -”

 

“Coffee for you,” Chan says firmly pushing Jisung into the living room, “How much did you write?” He heads into the small kitchenette and pours some of the coffee into a mug and stirring in creamer like how Jisung usually does it for himself. 

 

“Enough,” Jisung calls from the living room, “Like - a lot, but probably only enough for a song, unless I salvage the lyrics I’m not using and add them to another song, though I don’t think it’ll feel the same. Thank you, hyung,” He adds and cups his coffee mug, blowing the steam rising off the surface gently. 

 

“You do your thing then,” Chan says fondly, ruffling Jisung’s hair, “But try to get some sleep, okay? Are you planning to submit this song along with your paper then? It’s extra-credit, right?”

 

Jisung nods. “Oh yeah, there’s the extra-credit. I’m not sure if I wanna use this song though… I mean - I don’t know if I can capture what I wanna capture,” He neglects to add that it might be a tad too personal to submit, and the person in particular he’s writing about would be so creeped out if they ever found out. 

 

“In the end, it’s always your choice,” Chan says as Changbin stumbles out of the bathroom, looking like an odd mixture of well-rested and no sleep at all. “Binnie woke up at three in the morning,” He whispers to Jisung as Changbin walks around zombie-like, “Technically, he got like seven hours of sleep, but it was pretty patchy so… I’d say it’s as bad as no sleep at all.” 

 

“Jisung?” Changbin says belatedly, finally realising Jisung’s in the living room, “What’re you doing here?” 

 

“Coffee,” Jisung says succinctly. 

 

The three of them bask in the quiet glow of the morning, accompanied by the soothing rush of the shower where Woojin’s in the bathroom as they nurse their coffees, staring somewhat distractedly into the depths of their mugs. “Hyung-ah,” Jisung starts slowly, mind firmly revolving around his song, “How would you… like, how would you incorporate a beach into a song? Like, not a summer song, not that, but like the ocean and the waves and the wind?”

 

Unfazed by the question, they mull over it for a while. “Well,” Changbin says, looking like he’s prone to fall asleep any moment, “You could find a beat that’s like the waves… something that’s stronger on the first beat and weaker on the rest. As for wind… you can try doing harmonies to sound like the wind,”

 

“Accentuate the first beats,” Chan says in agreement, “Try messing around with the harmonies in a flat key or something, it really depends on the pitch of the wind you wanna create - is it a calming wind, or is it from a storm, something like that.” 

 

“Thanks,” Jisung says rapidly absorbing their advice and rapidly immersing himself in his mind again. To embody the ocean in a song was one thing, but to capture the fluidity and familiarity of the dance is something else entirely, especially when he’s never made a song to a choreography. “Seriously, thanks,” He repeats, smiling at the both of them, “I owe you guys a lot.”

 

“Don’t mention it,” Changbin says, setting his mug down, “We produce music together, you’ve helped us just as much.” 

 

Chan pulls Jisung in for a quick hug. “Never forget, yeah? Are you ready, Binnie? We should go out soon to meet Felix. He sent me the address and asked me to take everyone there and that he’ll meet us there with Minho,” He gives a little sigh, “Minho really hasn’t changed from the last time I saw him. Constantly overworks himself but doesn’t realise it because he loves dancing so much.” 

 

At the word ‘dancing’, Jisung gives a little jolt. Surely, it couldn’t be Chan’s cousin that he saw last night… He shakes himself and stands up as Chan goes to fetch Woojin and Changbin slips on his sneakers. “You’ve got a lot on your mind for this time of the morning,” Changbin says observantly, watching Jisung almost trip over a bench in the garden. 

 

“Thinking of the song,” Jisung replies in a distant voice, staring at the archway that leads to the beach. In his mind’s eye, he can see himself walking down in the pitch darkness of the night and following the path of lights to an angel… He turns away and follows the rest of them as everyone gathers in the garden space. 

 

“Alright, everyone here?” Chan asks, parent-like, and does a quick headcount to make sure. “Okay - Lix texted me the address, and it’s about a ten minute walk - do you guys know this place?” He shows the address to Seungmin and Hyunjin. 

 

They peer at the phone screen. “Oh,” Seungmin says, face lighting up in recognition, “Is it the really old coffeeshop? It’s the one across the new bookstore, you know it, Jinnie -”

 

“Oh yeah, you’re right,” Hyunjin says, seeming to vaguely recall the place, “I suppose so? I dunno, I don’t really go to that part of town,”   
  


“That’s because you never go anywhere,” Seungmin says exasperatedly. 

 

“Untrue,” Hyunjin objects as they set off, following Chan, “I go out. We go out on dates!” 

 

“To the same places,” Seungmin points out, “And yes, I like where we go, don’t change the subject. One day, we’re going to explore in our hometown, otherwise you’ll never know anything apart from the few places you always go.” 

 

“I know places,” Hyunjin mutters slightly petulantly. 

 

“Yeah, the resort, the coffeeshop, the park and the restaurant where we go for our anniversaries,” Seungmin counts out, “Did I miss anything?” 

 

“Alright,” Hyunjin relents, “Take me town exploring. It’s a date - date!” He says firmly, “We haven’t been on a proper date since our exams started, and it’s a good time to do so. Let’s go next Wednesday.”

 

“Wednesday?” Seungmin says, then - “Wait, isn’t this Wednesday -” He stops walking and stares at Hyunjin. Jeongin walks into him. “Next Wednesday,” He repeats, “It’s - It’s -”   
  


“Yeah,” Hyunjin says with a winning smile, “Take me town-exploring and I’ll get you anything you want - it’ll be a great way to celebrate, won’t it?”

 

“Celebrate what?” Woojin asks tentatively as Seungmin traps Hyunjin in a tight hug. 

 

“It’s our second anniversary,” Hyunjin says, muffled by Seungmin’s hair, “Minnie forgot amidst all the holidays and meeting you guys, but it’s okay, I was going to do a surprise - this is fine too.”

 

“I can’t believe I love you,” Seungmin says in a suspiciously teary voice and dashes at his eyes from behind his glasses. 

 

“I love you too,” Hyunjin says cheerfully, “Now c’mon babe, if Minho-hyung or Lixie sees you with red eyes they’ll have me for breakfast and you won’t have an anniversary to look forward to,” He holds Seungmin’s hand for the rest of the walk and everyone is subjected to them being more affectionate than usual. 

 

“You guys could give Chan-hyung and Woojin-hyung a run for their money,” Jisung says. No one replies -  they’re all distracted as Felix is waving at them enthusiastically from outside a coffee shop with old-fashioned lettering, though it’s well maintained. 

 

“Hello!” Felix says as soon as they’re within earshot, “I was worried it might be a little difficult to find since it’s not a part of town I took you guys too - come on, we’re here because Minho-hyung likes this place.” They all file in through the narrow doors and as Jisung looks in, he barely notices the rustic furniture or the sweet old-fashioned decorations. His eyes fall on the only figure in the whole coffee shop. 

 

Caramel hair tangled messily and slightly bloodshot eyes are paired with a pair of lips that looks like they’re swollen from biting on them. Jisung knows these features. He’s seen them before. He’s seen them under a lone lamplight in the unholy hours of the morning in an old pavilion with only the wind and the waves to tell his story. Jisung knows those features too well. “Fuck,” He breathes out, and the owner of that face looks up, and their eyes meet, “ _ Fuck _ .” He’s found the guy on the beach. The guy who he’s writing a song for; the one he saw dancing; the one he can’t stop thinking about. 

 

“Fuck,” Jisung says loudly, once again, for good measure. He just isn’t expecting the other guy to say the exact same thing.

 

“ _ Fuck _ ,” He says. Perhaps Jisung is biased in saying that even his voice is nice.

 

“Interesting,” Felix says, a wicked grin on his face, mimicking what Minho had told him just yesterday at this time, “Everyone, this is Minho-hyung,” He watches as an open-mouthed Jisung stares at Minho, unable to take his eyes off him. Seungmin won’t be able to tease just him,  _ hah _ . 

 

Jisung, to be fair, doesn’t try that hard not to stare. “Stop staring at hyung, you’re being a creep,” Jeongin says out of the corner of his mouth as Minho is introduced to everyone he doesn’t know, which admittedly, is only Woojin, Jisung and Changbin. 

 

“Oh, you’re dating Channie-hyung!” Minho says, “Did you know, the last time I went to visit him, he couldn’t stop talking about you? He said a lot about your voice and he really liked your smile and -”

 

“I heard all that too,” Woojin says when he stops laughing and Chan’s face resembles something like a tomato, “I think Felix said the exact same thing.” 

 

“I’m Changbin,” Changbin says, extending a hand over the table. 

 

Minho’s eyes go wide. “Wait -  _ you _ ’re the one - hmm,” He gives Changbin a critical glare, and the other feels slightly intimidated, sitting straighter for some reason, “Alright, you’re good,” He pronounces, much to Changbin’s confusion, and pats his hand, “Take care of my baby brother, okay?” 

 

Before Changbin or Felix can so much as protest, Minho’s already moved on to Jisung. “I’m Minho,” He says brightly, “It’s nice to meet you.”

 

“I - I’m Jisung,” Jisung says in a strangled voice. He prays to the high heavens that Minho won’t recognise him from this morning when he wasn’t in his right mind. “It’s nice to finally meet you too - everyone’s been talking about you since we arrived.” 

 

“Yeah, I got caught up in my work,” Minho says dismissively, then he cocks his head a little, staring at Jisung, “You know, you look quite familiar… Like I’ve seen you around town - have you been here to visit before?” 

 

Jisung seizes the ready-made excuse. “Oh - actually, I came with my family quite a few years back, but the town’s changed a bit since, hasn’t it?” It’s not a lie; Jisung  _ has  _ been here with his family before, and if that’s where Minho recognises him from, he’ll leave it at there for now. 

 

“Is that why you asked about the wooden pier?” Felix pipes up from the other end of the table. 

 

Jisung’s answer is lost within the commotion of a waitress arriving to take their orders, and after she leaves the table descends into a slightly awkward silence. “You dance,” Jisung blurts out suddenly, and immediately regrets it,”

 

“What - How did you know?”

 

Jisung panics. “Uh - I gue - I mean, I heard Felix talking about how you rot away in the dance studio, and that this wasn’t the first time so - yeah,” He gives a nervous laugh as Minho leans back, apparently satisfied by the explanation. Mentally, he gives himself a pat on the back. It’s going to be a long, long lunch. 

 

“You have a crush,” Chan cooes at Jisung much later that evening when they’re camped out in Jisung’s room for a while, Woojin and Jeongin having decided to explore the beach at this time, “Aren’t you cute? On my cousin, nonetheless - hey, you could end being my cousin-in-law, both of you -”   
  


“You’re getting ahead of yourself!” Jisung screeches, face flaming, “I just - admire his dancing, okay? Please don’t tell him I creeped on him, I wanna apologise to him in person.” 

 

“It’s very cute,” Changbin says, “I didn’t peg you for one to have a crush at first sight - in fact, no sight - I didn’t think you could see his face at all.”

 

“Shut up or I’ll tell Felix you wanna kiss all his freckles, and I’ve got that recording of you going ‘Lix is such a sunshine, he really is, I’m so soft’ and I won’t hesitate to send it right now,” Jisung threatens.

 

Changbin throws his hands in the air in mock surrender. “Alright, alright, I’ll stop. But seriously, do you have a crush on him? I mean, if you did, it’s pretty obvious… To everyone except him, don’t worry,” He adds when Jisung looks up, alarmed at the implications. 

 

Jisung slumps back once again. “Okay - okay,” He repeats slowly breathing out, “How do you tell someone you accidentally saw them dancing and it was really nice and that you'd like them to dance to a song you made for them?” It isn't until a few moments later that Jisung realises his tongue has slipped. 

 

“The song you're writing,” Changbin intonates slowly, “The one you asked us for advice, the one with the ocean and the wind - that's the song you're writing for Minho?”

 

“Um -” Jisung panics slightly, “Okay, so maybe, yes? I mean, it's an interesting project from an objective point of view, and I swear I'll tell hyung sooner rather than later about all this… Song writing what not,” He grimaces slightly; it will undoubtedly be an awkward, painful conversation and he can only hope Minho will forgive him eventually. 

 

“Well, apologise to him before you finish the song,” Chan says sternly, “Then at least he can come to terms with it slowly rather than you telling him suddenly you spied on him, got a crush and wrote a song for him all in the same breath.”

 

“Yea,” Jisung says, “Okay, hyung, but - Minho-hyung really dances so well? I’ve never seen someone dance like that - like, wow, I really - really like the way he dances, he dances like he’s expressing all his feelings, and he danced to the  _ ocean waves  _ who the hell does that, seriously, I’ve heard of people dancing to silence or beatbox - but he danced to the waves?! Is like a - a dancing god or something -” 

 

“He’s having an existential crisis,” Chan explains when Woojin walks through the door, looking utterly confused, “Apparently he’s really fucking gay for Minho -”

 

“ _ Hyung _ !”

 

“Shut up, child. Jisung’s been going on about Minho’s dancing and freaking out over his existence and… the everyday, usual thing, you know? How was your walk, babe?” 

 

Woojin smiles and leans down to kiss Chan. “It was really nice - did you know we found a really old pavilion about three-quarters way down the beach? It seemed really sweet, but it looks like it belongs to someone because there were murals all over it,” 

 

Jisung chokes quietly behind them.

 

* * *

 

Jisung spent his whole university life influenced the best role models, so he spends the new morning fucking around in his room, trying to fiddle with his song - procrastinating, as Chan and Changbin have taught him so well to do when faced with crippling decisions that could have a lasting impact on him. He studiously ignores the knocks that Jeongin gives him (the door is locked) and gives a convincing snore when Jeongin asks if he’s up. Now it’s near noon, he’s been up for five hours, and he’s not entirely sure if what he’s done can be counted as progress. 

 

“That can’t be right,” Jisung mutters under his breath, leaning forward to stare at his screen and pressing his headphones closer, “What the fuck happened here?” He’s so deeply engrossed in his work that he doesn’t notice the loud knocks at his door, or the chink of a key being inserted and so -

 

“Jisung, I -”

 

“ _ What the actual fuck  _ -” Jisung spits out, pushing back away from his table so hard his headphones almost rip out from the laptop socket. It’s Minho. Minho, standing in his doorway with a shocked expression on his face. Minho, who he met yesterday. Minho, who he’s writing a song about, with the lyrics to it spread everywhere on his desk. “Fuck -” He sweeps the loose papers up and stashes them into his backpack, hoping Minho hasn’t seen them, “Sorry, hyung,” He says when his heart calms down a little, “I just - I thought I locked the door.” 

 

Minho looks guilty, “Ah - Jisung, I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to disturb you or - Channie-hyung was worried about you since you didn’t come for breakfast, and it’s almost lunch now. So he asked if I had a spare key to all the bedrooms and I said yes, so I came to unlock the door and - well, I’m sorry I disturbed you -”

 

“No, no,” Jisung says as soon as he can find a space in Minho’s explanations, “Hyung, I didn’t hear you coming in, it’s my fault too - and, well, yeah - I mean, I should - should go to lunch? Is - Is that why you came to find me?” 

 

“Um,” Jisung must be hallucinating if he’s seeing Minho blushing, “Yeah, I came to get you for lunch, the rest are in the dining hall already. Are you ready? Is - Is your work saved? Channie-hyung said something about you writing a song.” 

 

Jisung almost chokes. “He - He did?”

 

“Uh - yeah, like, he mentioned you might be busy writing a song then he asked me to go find you.” Minho seems to be squinting at the loose papers that are stuffed in his bag, so Jisung hurries to get Minho out of his room. 

 

The first thing Jisung will do when he sees Chan is kill him. “Okay, let’s go then,” He says after he’s triple-checked that his work is saved, “Oh, here are your keys by the way, hyung… Mine are with me.”

 

Minho takes them, and Jisung pretends not to shiver when his fingers graze his palms, “Thank you, Jisung.”

 

“You’re - You’re welcome,” Jisung says, hoping to the highest heavens Minho won’t notice his unusual stutter. As they walk towards the dining hall, Jisung is reminded that this would be the perfect time to tell Minho what happened, and why he knows Minho dances. There’s no one else around, and it would be better to get this all over with. He’s gathering his courage up, and when he finally manages to open his mouth, Minho beats him to it. 

 

“So, you’re Chan-hyung’s friend?” Minho asks lightly, breaking their silence. 

 

“Oh - uh, yeah, I met him when I first went to university. He was one of the seniors that helped the freshmen to settle in, and he took a liking to me, so I guess that’s when I got adopted?” 

 

Minho laughs. It’s like ocean wind to Jisung’s ears. “You’re right, Chan-hyung is like that. He loves taking care of other people since he’s used to taking care of Jeonginnie, and when he was still here, Felix.” 

 

“Chan-hyung lived here before?” Jisung asks curiously, “He’s never mentioned it.” 

 

“Oh yeah, he did,” Minho says as they walk up the stairs, “He used to live here until Jeongin was born, then his family moved into the city because of his parents’ jobs. Before that we used to play together and Felix would get hurt from playing around, which I suppose aroused Chan-hyung’s parental instincts in the first place.” 

 

“Maybe you should tell me some embarrassing childhood stories,” Jisung muses, “God knows I have so much dirt on Chan-hyung it’s not even funny anymore.”

 

“It’s a deal,” Minho says solemnly, “I’ll tell you all about the things he did as a kid - it was  _ wild _ , let me tell you -”

 

“What, are you guys making drug deals behind our backs?” Felix asks, deep voice echoing loudly throughout the dining hall. It earns them a few scandalised looks.

 

“Yeah, it’s the family business, isn’t it?” Minho says loudly, sending winks at everyone who’s looking at them. “Sir, do  _ you _ want some?” He asks sweetly towards the nearest man who’s looking at them. 

 

“Hyung’s shameless,” Felix sighs. The man turns away from them, muttering loudly about kids these days. 

 

Minho sits down at the two remaining seats, looking entirely unperturbed. “You know me so well, it’s like you’re related to me.”

 

“ _ Of all the shit you say _ ,” Seungmin says, holding the fork in his hand a little too tightly. 

 

“Oh, are  _ you _ related to me -” 

 

“Minho’s just a fucking dork,” Chan whispers to Jisung, “He says the weirdest stuff and usually gets away with it.” 

 

“Incredible,” Jisung says, slightly starry-eyed. 

 

Changbin shakes his head. “This one’s no good.” 

 

“Yet you were the one who knocked over the milk at breakfast when Felix asked you to pass it? Binnie, really -” Chan is distracted when Jeongin asks him if it’s okay to get the chicken, and he forgets what he’s saying after checking that Jeongin isn’t allergic to anything in the dish. “What was I saying?”

 

“Absolutely nothing,” Changbin says promptly, warily eyeing both Chan and Felix, “Let’s place our orders -”

 

“This is nice,” Felix says from opposite them, stabbing his finger at a dish, “It’s a house special! I mean, I think it is, eomma always asks us to tell the guests it is…” 

 

“It’s because it’s the easiest dish to make since all the ingredients are available in the market,” Minho says conspiratorially, “And Jiyeon-noona always buys too much, so eomma did the next best thing and asked us to promote it really hard - I mean, it  _ really  _ is nice, but I’m just saying.”

 

“I’ll have it,” Jisung says before Minho can go on for any longer. Minho would start spilling the resorts’ secrets if he was allowed to rant on.

 

“Okay!” Felix says cheerfully. His smile is brighter than the goddamn lights in the dining hall. 

 

Jisung refrains from pointing out that Changbin’s following Felix’s movements until Felix disappears into the back. “You really like him, don’t you,” He says quietly, “I can see it. Everyone can, probably.”

 

Changbin’s gaze wavers and he directs it toward the tablecloth. “I - I suppose so? There was a reason I didn’t tell you guys about this,” He gives a short, harsh laugh, “I could never get over him because he happened to help me when I wasn’t in a good situation before I met you guys, and… and he was the light I needed,” He says in one breath, exhaling slowly, “Seeing him again when I’m in a better place - I mean, it feels like I can actually offer him something in a relationship.” 

 

“You’re good,” Jisung says simply, “Felix liked you then and he still likes you now. He’s seen your bad side, and he still likes you. You could be in a good place now and offer him the world and he would only want you.” 

 

It might be a trick of the light, but Changbin’s eyes glimmer, and when Felix walks back into the room, he nods slowly. “Thanks, Jisungie,” He says. There’s some silence before Changbin shifts, and he says, “You know, you’re starting to look at Minho the same way,” then he leans forward to talk to Felix and Jisung is left staring over Minho’s shoulder. 

 

“I haven’t known him for long,” Jisung says, but then Minho smiles at him and asks him what he thinks about the moon landing being a conspiracy theory, and Jisung is sucked into an argument that sustains them throughout the meal. 

 

_ You’re starting to look at Minho the same way _ . 

  
  


Jisung should have seen it coming that Minho would always take him up on the sort-of offer he suggested when they were talking about Chan’s childhood. It’s another new  day already, and his sole desire is to melt away in his room when Minho appears in his living room, asking if he wants to go into town. “Hyung,” He says, “I - I wanna work on this for a while, it’s almost done.” Apparently, it’s a solid enough excuse for Minho. 

 

Minho lets go of his sleeve and steps back a bit, though disappointment is tattooed on the edges of the way his eyes wrinkle. “Oh - I thought, you know, I thought you’d worked so much yesterday already but - I guess you picked up on Chan-hyung’s work habits,” He gives a short laugh and runs a hand through his hair, “I guess I’ll see you at dinner? Don’t forget to eat something, Jisung, and make sure you don’t overwork yourself.” 

 

Jisung swallows. Takes a look at his work and then Minho. “Hyung - Hyung, give me a half hour, and I’ll meet you outside,” He says, compromising, “I can’t get the bridge to work, and I might get inspiration in town. Thanks for - for coming to get me.” 

 

“Really? Alright then, I’ll see you!” Minho says, eyes now crinkled with a smile and he bounces outside, the door shutting with a soft  _ thud _ . 

 

“I can’t believe you’re this whipped for each other already,” Jeongin says dryly, flipping the page of a book he’s reading, “You’ve known hyung for what, two days?” 

 

“It’s not nice to turn an invitation down, and I  _ should  _ be going out, I’m on vacation, in case you forgot,” Jisung says, “You should come too, it’s so nice out today.” 

 

Jeongin raises the book he’s reading to show Jisung, “I’m busy, go ask someone else. Besides, I went out yesterday morning, and I’m lazy today. Go have fun with the hyungs’ and bring something back, I guess? The town has a lot of really nice trinkets, I’m sure you’ll find something nice.” 

 

“You bought that dreamcatcher in town, didn’t you?” Jisung asks, trying to align the ocean drum to his liking. 

 

“Yep, it’s really nice, isn’t it? Channie-hyung has a matching one too! Buy something for your family, I guess? Where are they, anyway?”

 

“Overseas,” Jisung mumbles, “They couldn’t care less if I got them 100,000 won or 10,000 won worth of gifts. They’d appreciate it all the same.”

 

“Until they figure out the price,” Jeongin says. 

 

They fall into a companionable silence, Jeongin reading faster now that he wasn’t talking, and Jisung lapses into silent thoughtfulness, staring at his laptop screen yet again and letting the ocean drum play on loop. Deciding it’s too loud and too jarring, he tones it down a bit, afraid it’ll overpower the melody and listens to it again. It’s okay, he thinks, but it’s certainly nowhere near done, nowhere near his standards of the music he produces. 

 

“I’m going,” Jisung says, standing up and saving his work, “I can’t stay in here anymore - I’ll lose my mind at this rate.” 

 

“Haven’t you already?” 

 

“Harhar, very funny,” Jisung says, “Don’t break anything while I’m gone or hurt yourself. Maybe call adult supervision while you’re at it.” 

 

“I’m not a  _ baby _ !” 

 

“Of course you are, what on earth are you talking about? Alright - I’m going, see you at dinner!” 

 

“See you,” Jeongin says grudgingly. 

 

It  _ is  _ nice outside today, and he breathes the warm summer air for a few moments, relishing in the feeling of slowly relaxing and feeling some of the stress leave his body. He opens his eyes and looks around the garden - Seungmin, Felix and Minho are sitting on the benches, talking, and their conversation just about floats over to him, a pleasant buzz of sound that Jisung will associate with summer. 

 

“ _ It can’t hurt to take a chance _ ,” Jisung hears Seungmin say. Afraid that he’s intruding on a private conversation, he calls to them from some ways away. 

 

“Hey, I’m here - sorry if you were talking -” 

 

“Hey,” Minho says. 

 

“Hi,” Seungmin says. 

 

“What did you hear?” Felix demands. 

 

Taken aback, Jisung says, “I heard Seungmin saying something taking a chance? That’s all I heard, really.” 

 

“Okay,” Felix says, breathing out, “Sorry for scaring you - we were just talking about something,” He looks guilty, but Jisung waves his hand. 

 

“No, it’s fine, you guys didn’t know I was coming out, it’s okay.”

 

“Yeah, we’re going into town for a bit,” Minho says, “Do you wanna come along? We’ll just stroll around… maybe some window shopping if you want? The shops here are good at the vintage, retro style clothing, and it’s all pretty fairly priced.” 

 

“Nah,” Felix says, still looking a little distant, “I’ll stay with Seungminnie, we have some things to do, and I have to help eomma later,” He stands up, and the both of them walk towards the archway, presumably towards the beach, and their voices melt into the summer air. 

 

“Is he okay?” Jisung asks, worried. 

 

Minho bites his lip, “He’ll be okay, he just has some things on his mind, and Seungmin is good at talking to people. But anyway!” He claps his hands together, “We’re meant to have a relaxing afternoon! I’ve asked the rest, but they said they were all busy, which is weird, they’re almost never busy…” His eyes narrow suspiciously at Chan’s hut, where Jisung presumes everyone else is, before turning back to Jisung, “Oh well, it’ll just be us today then. I think Chan-hyung is planning something for tomorrow. Let’s go?” 

 

Jisung falls into step beside Minho, and they make their way out of the resort and on the road that would take them into town. “There’s a really nice lemonade stand down this road, and most the shops are here too,” Minho points out, “Or we could go that way and go through the attractions, what do you wanna do?” 

 

“Ah - both sounds fine,” Jisung says, “But you wanted to go window shopping? Should we go that way then?” 

 

“Yeah, okay,” Minho says happily, and they take that road, walking together with light steps under the sultry summer sky. 

 

“You’re not working at the resort today?” Jisung asks, curious about the brothers roles in the resort, for they seemed to be able to walk around town freely with them most of the time. 

 

“No,” Minho shakes his head, “I work Monday to Wednesday from two until night, Felix works Thursday and Friday mornings, and I work with Felix on the weekends the whole day unless there isn’t much to do. We help out in the dining hall and reception, and sometimes in the kitchen… I don’t think eomma trusts us in the kitchen all that much, not after we burned the meat some time ago.” 

 

“The time you guys work seems really specific,” Jisung observes, mentally making a note never to let Minho in the kitchen. 

 

“Yeah, it’s the time when we’re most free. I just started teaching a dance class in the mornings when I work, and I spend the rest of my days in the dance studio. Felix has language and dance classes in the evenings, so he works in the morning.”

 

“You’re really busy then,” Jisung says, slightly surprised.

 

“But I can make time since you guys came over,” Minho says, “I should be spending time with you guys, especially since Chan-hyungie and Jeonginnie brought all of you over. Besides, I can take it a bit easier - it’s my first summer as a graduate! I’ll stress about work when the summer is over, I guess.”

 

“You just graduated?” Jisung asks as they pause by a shop detailing the sales that are going on, “When the summer ends I’ll have two more years to go.”

 

“Yeah, I’m a fresh graduate! I went to the university in the city, but not in the area that your university is. It’s nearer to the outskirts, but they had a great Performing Arts program, so I went there… Yeah, I’m a professional dancer,” He adds when Jisung gives him a questioning look. “What do you do? I’m assuming it’s something like Channie-hyung’s, with the music and all.” 

 

“I major in Music Technology… Planning to be a producer and all that, you know.” 

 

“That’s cool!” Minho says with enthusiasm, “You can create songs and make people feel things, can’t you? I wish I could produce music too - I’ve tried it before, but I guess I need practice. I still like dancing the most!” 

 

Jisung sees the way Minho talks about dancing; it’s like it’s his everything, the very air that he breath, and what he wants to do with it -  _ inspire people, make them feel things, teach them that dancing isn’t something to be feared _ \- it only further reaffirms his desires to give Minho a song, see what he would do with it, see how he would dance to it. And that he should really tell Minho about the beach event. 

 

Taking a deep breath, Jisung decides it’s best to get this over just as Minho drags him into a store selling all sorts of accessories. “Hyung, I need to tell you something,” He starts in a slightly strangled voice. 

 

“Yeah? Go ahead.” 

 

“Okay, so - you remember the day we met, right?” He waits for Minho to nod his head before continuing, “Yeah, I - I was surprised to meet you, because I saw you dancing in that old pavilion on the beach the night before, and I’m sorry for spying on you, hyung, but I didn’t want to interrupt you since you looked so peaceful - basically, I’m sorry for being a creep and running away even after you asked if I was from the resort,” Jisung finishes, breathless. 

 

Minho’s hand has stilled over a bracelet he was admiring. “Ah - you’re the one I saw in the dark that time?” He turns to Jisung, an awkward smile graced over his features, “I mean, I briefly saw your face, but I wasn’t sure if it was you, and I don’t think it’s good to accost someone you’ve just met. But it was nice of you to apologise, though you weren’t expecting to meet anyone, I understand,” There’s a small pause before Minho smiles again, this time sweeter, “I accept your apology, just never creep on me again, I honestly thought someone was stalking me.”

 

Jisung breathes out in relief, “Of course, hyung. Thank you - Thank you. I won’t creep on you again, I swear on my life,” He feels almost weak with relief. 

 

“If you see me again, just call for me, I won’t bite,” Minho advises him. 

 

“Definitely,” Jisung says, then decides he should drop the other bomb. “Also, hyung, I saw you dancing and -”   
  


“Should I be wary?” Minho asks, almost dropping a necklace. 

 

“Well, I mean - I was inspired to write a song when I saw you dancing to the waves, and I was wondering how I’d create a song to reflect the waves and the wind, and how you’d dance to that -” He pauses in his word vomit when Minho looks at him, wide-eyed, “ - yeah, so, I’m writing a song… for you.” 

 

Minho stares at him, necklace in hand forgotten. “I got a stalker,” He says finally, amusement tinting his tone, “I got a stalker that wrote me a song. Jisung, you really wrote a song?” He replaces the necklace on the rack as Jisung picks a pair of sunglasses up to examine them in lieu of looking at Minho. 

 

“Yeah,” Jisung admits, “I’m really, really sorry - it  _ does  _ sound creepy, but I just wanted you to know that the song I’m writing was inspired by your dance, and if you’d like, I could show it to you, and you can decide what to do with it.” 

 

Minho picks up a silver choker and proceeds to the counter, leaving Jisung to flounder after him. “I would be honoured to have a song from you,” Minho says, sincerity leaking through his voice, “No one’s ever written a song for me,” He laughs a little and thanks the cashier after taking his choker. 

 

“I’d write a thousand songs for you,” Jisung mutters under his breath. His breath catches in his throat when Minho exits the shop, holding the door open for him with soft eyes, sunshine catching on his skin and through his hair in golden streams. 

 

“Jisung? C’mon, or do I have to drag you out? Do you wanna buy something else?” 

 

“No, hyung,” Jisung says, then follows Minho out. In the back of his mind, Changbin’s words once again echo, words resounding loudly. As he realises what Changbin implied was coming true, he looks at Minho once again, beside him, close but yet still distant, he decides it can’t be too bad. He has the whole summer to learn about Minho, after all. 

 

(He does. That day, he learns that Minho only likes the lemonade on the corner, because, “It’s the perfect mix of sweet and sour, try it!”. He learns that Minho has a small tattoo underneath his ear and has more than several ear piercings. He learns that Minho seems quiet and sweet, but he’s also loud and snarky and he wouldn’t hesitate to sell his own brother off. He learns all that and more and maybe he wants to learn more.) 

 

* * *

 

“I told you Chan had some idea cooked up,” Minho says as they stand in the garden, laden with bags of food and a stove and god knows what more. Everyone’s bustling around, adjusting bag straps or tripping over an unnoticed bag. 

 

“Alright!” Chan says after everyone quietens down, “We’re going swimming, then a campfire on the beach! It’s a great opportunity for everyone to get to know each other better, since we’ve been here for almost a week. We’re just waiting for Felix to get back from his reception duties before we head off.” 

 

“And we need this much stuff?” Jisung asks incredulously, “Are you packing for the apocalypse or for a campfire night?” He’s peeked in one of the bags, and he saw meat, more meat, a pair of tongs and some lettuce. He doesn’t dare to imagine what’s in the other bags. 

 

“Those bags,” Chan says, pointing, “Are your clothes, which you’d wanna change into after swimming, and the other bags have the food and kitchen equipment and gas. Do you want to starve for dinner?” 

 

“All part of the struggling artist facade,” Changbin drawls lowly, heaving one of the bags onto his shoulder, “We’ve all missed our fair share of meals when we got caught up in our work.” 

 

“Never with food readily available, I think,” Chan says. He’s referring to all the times when he lured Jisung and Changbin out with promises of hot, home-cooked food, which is a form of bribery that is guaranteed to produce excellent results. He grins winningly when Changbin hums and shrugs, admitting defeat. 

 

A loud yelp and an equally loud  _ thump _ alerts them to the hallway where Felix is on the ground, wincing and clutching his ankle. “Hi, guys - maybe a little bit of help -” He doesn’t even get to finish his sentence when Changbin drops the bag he was holding and rushes over to his side, hooking an arm around his waist. Minho is right behind him, examining his ankle with a somewhat professional air. 

 

“Did you go dancing?” Minho asks him severely, fixing Felix with a stern glance. 

 

Felix laughs a little nervously. “Uh - Maybe I did? But - just like, a little bit, a really little bit, really -”   
  


“ _ You almost needed an ankle brace, _ ” Minho hisses, “And you’re telling me you’re not taking it easy like the doctor told you to? Two weeks, Felix, two weeks is -”

 

“A length of time you wouldn’t go without dancing,” Felix finishes for him, grimacing as Changbin helps him stand, “I was going stir-crazy hyung, and besides, I just slipped because my ankle gave a way a bit as I went down the stairs. I’ll be fine if I rest it for a while.” 

 

“Be careful,” Changbin says as he tentatively lets go of Felix, “If you need help just give us a shout.” 

 

“Th - Thanks, hyung,” Felix says, “I should be okay as long as I walk properly… Which might be hard on sand but I haven’t lived here all my life for nothing.” He takes baby steps towards the pile of bags in the garden and Chan steps in his way almost immediately.

 

“ _ No _ ,” He says firmly, “You are taking absolutely  _ nothing _ . You’re not getting injured on my watch. Why did you need an ankle brace?” 

 

“Almost needed one,” Felix hastens to correct him, “Because -”   
  


“He was being an idiot,” Minho says, “Seungmin made him a bet that he couldn’t do a backflip, so of course Felix went ‘fuck you’ and he tried to do a backflip on the sand and gave himself a twisted ankle and almost knocked himself out. Seungmin laughed.” 

 

“Until I realised Lix was injured,” Seungmin protests, but he looks like he’s smirking. (He’s not trying very hard to hide it either.)

 

“Babe, maybe time to admit your shortcomings,” Hyunjin says, conciliatory, snaking an arm around Seungmin, both to calm and in case Seungmin actually attacks anyone. If he does, it’ll be himself first. 

 

“I acknowledge nothing,” Seungmin says. 

 

“Let’s go to the beach!” Felix interjects, after assuring everyone else he’s perfectly capable of walking, though he’s wincing on every other step. 

 

“Keep on eye on Felix please,” Minho begs Chan, “I don’t know, I can’t take care of him half as well as you did and that’s saying something,” He shivers internally, remembering all the times he turned away for one second only to find his baby brother in some sort of trouble later. 

 

“Don’t worry,” Chan says grimly, “Felix won’t be hurt again, not only because of me,” He gestures to Changbin, who’s eyeing Felix with a terrifying intensity, and Hyunjin, who’s taken it upon himself to lead Felix onto the sand slowly, “Felix is in good hands.” 

 

“Small miracles,” Minho says, picking up a bag for himself. “You didn’t bring sunscreen, did you,” He asks Chan when the thought occurs to him. The sun is still high in the sky, and if Minho’s memory serves him right, Chan will cook like a lobster if he doesn’t apply any sunscreen. One look at Chan’s face tells him everything he needs to know. “I’m going to get sunscreen,” He says, “I’ll be back.” 

 

Making a quick detour to his own hut, Minho runs into his room to pick up the sunscreen, and pauses briefly to look out his window. His room faces the beach, so he can see everyone filing out onto the beach and into one of the pavilions with the lunch tables. Squinting against the sunshine, he counts six heads. “That’s not right,” He says, then rushes back out into the garden. 

 

“Ah, we thought you’d disappeared,” Jisung says. 

 

“Jisung-hyung was very worried,” Jeongin provides, and narrowly avoided a smack from Jisung. 

 

“I’m here now,” Minho says before Jeongin can return Jisung’s smack, “Let’s go, Channie-hyung will burn if he doesn’t get sunscreen since he’s so pale.” 

 

They pick their way across the garden and onto the beach, sand warm enough for them to feel it through their shoes, and the rest of their friends wave at them from the pavilion they picked out. “Oh, go on,” Felix is whining, “Let me go… Look, I’ve been good, sitting down and all, and you’ll be there in case my ankle decides it has enough supporting my weight.” 

 

“Felix wants to go swimming,” Woojin informs them as Felix works his magic on Chan, “Chan doesn’t think he should,” They watch as Chan slowly crumbles and finally relents, telling Felix he’ll always have someone supervising him. “Not happening if Felix will have it his way,” Woojin observes as Felix excitedly leaps up and drags the closest person to him towards the ocean. It just so happens to be Changbin. 

 

Everyone follows after them, shedding their shoes and running into the waves with childlike shrieks. “It’s so cold!” Jisung gasps as Chan splashes water at him. 

 

“It feels great!” Jeongin says, laughing. Behind him, Seungmin tackles him and they roll in the shallow water together, accompanied by laughter from Hyunjin. “You’re coming in too,” Jeongin splutters, then pulls Chan in towards the deeper waters until they’re submerged at waist-height and drenched with water. 

 

“Let go of me!” Changbin yells when Woojin and Hyunjin have grabbed him under the armpits and by his ankles. He barely gets time to utter another yelp before they toss him into the waters; he emerges soaking wet and intent on revenge, shoving both of them into the water with him before stalking his way to shallower waters. Pushing his wet hair out of his eyes, he searches for Felix. “You okay?” He asks concernedly towards the other, who’s relegated to the shallow waters only, “You look pretty red, do you need some water?” 

 

“There’s plenty here,” Minho says loudly, them unleashes a handful of ocean water he had gathered on top of Felix’s head. “Be careful,” Minho says in Felix’s ear, “Or he’ll realise you’re staring.” 

 

“I’m  _ not _ ,” Felix says indignantly. 

 

“Not what?” Changbin asks suspiciously. 

 

“Nothing!” Felix squeaks as Jisung and Chan run past them to immerse themselves in ice-cold water. 

 

“Look!” Seungmin points out, “Small crabs!” He bends down to peek at them, delighted at his discovery. “They’re so cute - Jinnie, look -” Hyunjin waddles over, weighed down by waterlogged clothes and crouches down beside Seungmin as well, playing with the small crabs together. 

 

“Don’t,” Minho says, pouting slightly when Felix pours water down the back of his shirt.

 

“You did the exact same to me,” Felix says with an air of one that has sought revenge successfully. 

 

“You seemed thirsty,” Minho says, then runs further out before Felix can catch him. 

 

They only emerge from the ocean at sunset when the waters become too cold to withstand and a lukewarm breeze bites at their wet skin. “Le - Let’s change,” Chan says, chattering slightly, and they dry off hastily, swapping their wet clothes for dry ones at the back of the hut where it’s shielded from the wind. 

 

“The firepit is over there, by the way,” Minho says, voice muffled by his towel as he dries his hair, “You can start on the fire if you want.” 

 

Chan and Woojin head off to find tinder, being the only ones to have actually changed out of their wet clothes, and it's not long before they've kindled a fire; the flame burns merrily in the falling darkness, and Hyunjin takes over the role of grilling the meat, something he claims he can do very well. 

 

“This is really nice,” Jisung says with wide eyes as he chews the grilled meat, “How do you do it?”

 

Hyunjin grins, then places a finger over his lips. “A secret I'll take to the grave, since the only other person who knows it is Seungminnie,” He completely misses the look Seungmin shoots him - it’s a look that suggests he would sell Hyunjin’s secret at the drop of a hat.

 

In the middle of eating, Minho suggests playing something to pass the time. “I used to do this with my high school friends… Though I wouldn't suggest we play the games they did - I'm not letting anyone one of you take alcohol.”

 

“I mean, Truth or Dare is a classic,” Chan says around his mouthful, “But if we do play it no one should be allowed to ask for a truth three time in a row.”

 

“Please don't give stupid dares like skinny dipping then,” Seungmin says, “We should reserve the right to refuse any fares that endangers our dignity and pride.”

 

“Yeah, like you have any in the first place,” Felix says. He catches the skewer that Seungmin lobs at him with ease like he's done it a million times before. 

 

“Stop fighting,” Jeongin says impatiently, “Are we playing or not? The food's finished by the way - Woojin-hyungie took the last chicken skewer.”

 

Thus ensues a game of Truth and Dare that, to be fair, is pretty mild in comparison with some of the games they've played in the past. Jeongin is made to run out into the ocean and stand in there, feet submerged for a minute before he runs back, feet ice-cold; Chan is forced to pull a few terrible pickup lines on Woojin as everyone laughs themselves silly; Hyunjin, meanwhile reveals that he cries over watching anything, even reading webtoons. Seungmin vouches for his validity.

 

It isn’t long before the bottle spins to a stop on Jisung. “Truth,” He says lazily, taking a sip of his water. 

 

Hyunjin hums thoughtfully, then eyes Jisung. “Okay - who's the most attractive person here to you?”

 

Jisung really does choke on his water. “I - what?” He says, eyes streaming, “What if the person is spoken for?”

 

“Then they’ll just take it as a compliment,” Hyunjin says, “Attractiveness doesn't necessarily warrant romantic feelings, it could just be someone you find aesthetically pleasing, or maybe you can choose someone who's personality you really like.”

 

Jisung is really only stalling for time, because he knows exactly who he finds the most attractive out of their circle. “Alright,” He relents, “It's - It's Minho-hyung… Because I admire his dancing!” He adds hastily, though from the look on Hyunjin's face, he knows it's more than that. 

 

“Thank you,” Minho says.

 

“Right,” Jisung says, flushing slightly, “It's -” He spins the bottle and it points towards Changbin, “Changbin-hyung! Truth or Dare?” He hopes no one can tell he’s trying to direct the attention away from himself. 

 

“Dare,” Changbin says easily. 

 

Jisung narrows his eyes at Changbin, who's looked far too at ease the whole evening. “Alright then. Um - kiss the person you'd most likely date. On the cheek.”

 

Changbin arches an eyebrow at Jisung. “Alright,” He says, then eyes their circle. “Jeongin,” He starts in a slow voice. 

 

Felix gives an odd, strangled noise and makes a movement to retreat into the darkness.

 

“Can you scoot back, I wanna see Felix,” Changbin finishes in a loud voice and even by the firelight, Felix turns red alarmingly fast. 

 

“What?” Felix squeaks. 

 

Changbin only fixes him with an unreadable gaze, approaching him before angling his face and dropping a light kiss on Felix’s cheek. “I mean what I said,” Changbin says, words breathed against Felix’s freckles, “Jisung told me to kiss the person I'd wanna date - and I did.”

 

Felix looks at him, face the picture definition of astonishment, but then there's a small, hopeful smile breaking over his lips, and in the quietest voice ever he asks, “Hyung… You really - You really… I mean, I like you - I have ever since you came two years ago but - do - do you like me too?” His eyes glimmer with the reflection of the dancing flames, and Changbin sees himself reflected in the rich brown warmth. 

 

“I do,” Changbin says, and the words are so, so sweet on his lips, “I've liked you all this while, Lix, so -” He brings his hand up to gently brush over Felix’s freckles, looking at him with something akin to adoration, “ - Date me, Lix?”

 

“Glad we sorted that out,” Seungmin says as Felix throws his arms around Changbin delightedly, “Poor boy was so confused about all this,” Then his eyebrows shoot into his hairline as the newly formed couple fall into the sand. They all give them a few moments of privacy, opting to continue the game and let them talk.

 

“I like you,” Felix says, hair blending into the dark golden sand and reflecting the glow of the fire, creating a halo that makes him look positively angelic, “I like you so much, hyung,” His arms curl around Changbin’s waist tentatively, like he still isn’t sure if it’s real or not. 

 

“I like you too,” Changbin says, and looking into his eyes is like looking into the galaxy itself, “I always have.” He brushes Felix’s fringe away from his eyes and smiles softly, fingers dancing against Felix’s cheek. The night fades away around them. 

 

* * *

 

 

Maybe it’s seeing Changbin and Felix getting together, or maybe it’s watching the sunrise from his room that makes Jisung want to be brave - want to be braver that he actually is and see if it’ll lead him anywhere. There’s always something magical about being alone as one watches the sun rise, like it gives one new hope, just watching the sun rise stoically day after day, unwavering in its consistency even in the face of storms. Perhaps it’s this that makes Jisung find himself standing outside the dining hall, heart in his throat and waiting for Minho to finish helping out inside. 

 

_ You can do this _ , Jisung coaches himself, going over what he wants to say in his mind,  _ Minho-hyung won’t ridicule you in any situation, and you’ll never know if you don’t try _ . He takes a deep breath and tries to settle his jumpy nerves. 

 

“I’m going to meet Changbinnie-hyung,” Felix says, his voice resounding from inside, and there’s a corresponding yell of  _ Yeah, okay, sure, come back in time!  _ before Felix steps out and sees Jisung waiting outside. “Jisungie,” He greets, “What’re you doing out here? Do you wanna have dinner? If you go now Minho-hyungie will still be serving you, but not for long, he’s going off in 10 minutes.” 

 

“Is he?” Jisung asks, catching only what he’s nervous about, “No, I’m not here to eat dinner… I’m waiting for Minho-hyung.” 

 

Felix cocks his head and looks at Jisung. “Are you going to eat dinner with him?” 

 

“Um - something like that, if it goes well,” Jisung mutters, unable to really meet Felix’s gaze. 

 

“Ah,” Felix says, making a noise of understanding, “You’re asking hyung out on a date?” 

 

Jisung yelps. “I mean - yeah, I suppose so… If that’s okay, that’s okay, right?” He asks hastily. Felix shrugs and assures him that it’s fine, that Minho isn’t dating anyone else, then departs with a cheerful  _ good luck! _ and leaves Jisung to stew in his thoughts for another ten minutes. 

 

Jisung is so hyper aware of everything around him that he’s already standing straight and alert when Minho exits the dining hall. “Thank you, I’ll see you tomorrow!” Minho calls, his neck craned to look behind him and gives a little wave before facing the front. “Oh - Jisung! I wasn’t expecting to see you, are you getting dinner here?” 

 

“No - no,” Jisung says, stuttering over his words in the face of his rapidly increasing nervousness, “I’m - I’m here to ask you something, hyung.” He takes a fortifying gulp of air as Minho waits for him to continue. “So, uh - hyung - can I… can I take you out on a da - date?” He spits out, heart thumping erratically fast and palms clenched so tightly his fingernails are digging into his flesh. 

 

Minho’s mouth falls open slightly, expression schooled into amazement and shock. It takes a few moments for him to reply coherently, and every second makes Jisung more and more anxious. “Jisung - you really - I mean, yeah - yes - okay.” 

 

It takes a while for Jisung to realise Minho said yes. “Wait - seriously?”

 

Minho giggles, a light, tinkling sound that makes Jisung think of summer days and fresh air. “You’re really cute when your eyes go so wide like that. Really! Let’s go on a date - dinner, right?” They walk out of the resort together, shoulders bumping and slightly shy. The last time they had gone out together was to explore the town and only as friends; this time it was explicitly a date, and the atmosphere felt a bit heavier, expectations a little higher.

 

“Where are we going?” Minho asks, breaking the silence. 

 

“Um - just down here. I heard from Chan-hyung there was a restaurant here that you liked, so I thought we could go there?” 

 

“You - You really planned it,” Minho says, a tint of red colouring his cheeks. 

 

Jisung shrugs a little. “I wanted to do it right like how you deserve it, it’s the least I could do,” He pushes the door to the restaurant open and holds it for Minho. “There aren’t many people,” He says, looking around the restaurant, but a crown of brightly coloured hair catches his eye. 

 

Apparently, Minho is on the same wavelength as him. “Hey, isn’t that Felix and - Changbin! Are they here on a date too?” He cooes, then grabs Jisung’s hand to drag him towards their table. “Hey guys! Are you guys on a date?” He asks cheerfully, completely aware that he’s gatecrashing their date. 

 

“Hyungie!” Felix cries, looking up from the menu, “You’re here too? Jisung told me he was gonna ask you out on a date, but I didn’t know you guys would be coming here! Did Channie-hyung tell you this is Minho-hyung’s favourite place to eat?” 

 

“He didn’t exactly say favourite place,” Jisung admits. “Hyung, you brought Felix here too?” 

 

Changbin hums a little, entirely unperturbed. “Yeah, he said he liked the food here so we came here. Look, since you guys are here, make it a double date and sit down so we don’t have to keep looking across the restaurant.” He shifts further inside to let Jisung sit beside him, and they end facing their respective dates. He leans over the table to continue his conversation with Felix, leaving Jisung in silence with Minho. 

 

“So - what do you usually eat here?” 

 

Minho seizes a menu from a passing waiter and points out the dishes he really likes here. “The chicken is good,” He says enthusiastically, “But I also really like their grilled beef - it melts in your mouth, literally! We could get a burger and something else to share, so you get to eat more… But we don’t need to hurry if we’re coming back again.” 

 

Jisung tries not to overthink about what  _ next time _ implies, and focuses on choosing his food instead. “Maybe if I get this? Or the pasta? Which is better?” He decides on the pasta in the end, though he isn’t expecting for the waitress to say what she does say. 

 

“Alright,” She says, “Is that all? Two burgers, one pasta and one grilled chicken with cokes for all.” She waits for them to confirm her recital of their orders before smiling. “You guys are a very cute couple,” She says. It is a very nice thing to say. Which is a problem. The problem is not that she only says it to one pair of them. The problem is that she says it to Jisung and Changbin. Who are Not Dating. 

 

“I’m sorry,” Minho says pleasantly, an undercurrent of  _ what did you say lurking in his tone _ , “But that’s  _ my  _ date, and that’s my brother’s boyfriend,” 

 

Felix isn’t as passive as Minho. 

 

“I would like to never know my brother could kiss like that,” Minho says a little blandly, looking straight ahead at the wall, “Maybe you could do that when I’m not around?” 

 

“Kiss Jisungie then,” Felix suggests airily, sitting back down primly in his seat. 

 

“I don’t kiss on the first date, maybe next time,” Minho says. Jisung chokes on thin air. 

 

For the most part, the rest of dinner goes fairly well, and Minho finds himself relaxing in Jisung’s company, so much so that he feels comfortable running his mouth, and consequently spits out just about anything that comes to his mind. But for Jisung - who lives with Changbin, and personally says questionable things when he hasn’t had enough sleep - he’s hardly shaken by this, just takes it in within stride and participates in said questionable conversations. 

 

“Let’s split the bill,” Felix suggests when they’re finished. 

 

“No, let me pay,” Jisung says, “I asked you, hyung -”

 

“And I agreed,” Minho argues back, “So I should pay -”

 

“Did you not hear what I said?” Felix demands, “Split the bill and we’ll be out of here faster than both of you arguing about who should foot the bill.” Eventually, they listen to Felix’s suggestion and split the bill before they part at the entrance; Changbin and Felix are headed for the beach, while Minho said they could wander around town before it was too dark. 

 

“It was really nice,” Minho says happily, hands just brushing against each other as they walk under the fiery glow of the evening sky, “Thank you for bringing me out, Jisungie.” 

 

“It was my pleasure,” Jisung murmurs, catching Minho’s side profile and how his eyelashes cast dancing shadows on his cheeks with every downsweep. He tangles his pinky with Minho’s and somehow, their fingers lace together in a slow waltz, their hands warm in each others. “Would - Would you like to go on a date again, hyung?” 

 

“Yes,” Minho says simply, squeezing Jisung’s hand. 

 

They walk back to the resort slowly, until the sky is inked in dark velvet and the streetlamps flicker on, their dull glow doing nothing to distract from Minho’s brilliance, in Jisung’s eyes. Even just walking together on the gravel sidewalk has its own merits, the neverending stretch of worn grey made more than tolerable when it’s a walk they’re taking together. There are stars in the skies by there are more in Minho’s eyes and his words and Jisung can’t look away.

 

_ You’re starting to look at Minho the same way. _

 

Maybe he is. 

 

(“Do you think they saw us?” Seungmin asks, taking a sip out of Hyunjin’s milkshake. 

 

“They’re too wrapped up in each other,” Hyunjin says, picking a fry off Seungmin’s plate, “Look at them being cute… Weren’t we once like that?” He watches Felix lunge over the table to kiss Changbin and makes a surprised noise before quickly looking away.

 

Seungmin gives him an slightly offended look. “What makes you think we aren’t still?” 

 

“You’re right,” Hyunjin says, laughing, “Remind me so we can outgross everyone,” He exchanges a smile with Seungmin.  Their hands are clasped on top of the table, and Hyunjin presses his lips to the back of Seungmin’s hand, disregarding Seungmin’s giggles of  _ Jinnie your mouth is oily! _ before he looks up to the sight of Seungmin’s face scrunched up with laughter. “I love you,” He says in a rush, the overwhelming affection rapidly filling his heart, “I love you stupid, Minnie.” 

 

Seungmin’s mouth remains upturned, but it’s infinitely gentler this time, and he squeezes Hyunjin’s hand. “I love you too, Jinnie. So much,” They spend the rest of dinner being lost in each other’s eyes, and not even the waitress can doubt they’re not a couple.)

 

* * *

 

Minho was expecting a quiet sleepover with only him and Seungmin. Hyunjin had run off to check something about his recital and Felix had been banned from going anywhere by their eomma, who had found out Felix was straining his ankle again. Therefore, it is entirely acceptable that he’s shaken when he’s greeted with Seungmin waiting for him with a sly look on his face.

 

“How was your date last night?” Seungmin says smugly as soon as Minho walks through the doors of his hut, “Saw you guys being so gross last night, but it was really cute - did you ask him or did he ask you? Or was it mutual?” 

 

Minho squeaks. “You - You  _ what _ ? You  _ saw  _ us?! We didn’t see you -”

 

“Because you were too wrapped up in each other,” Seungmin says lazily. Minho can’t say he’s wrong.

 

It is at this precise moment that Chan bursts through the door and points an accusatory finger at Minho, though not before greeting Seungmin. “Hi Seungminnie,” He starts, then, “I heard from Changbin that you went on a date with Jisung and you didn’t bother to tell me? I’m so  _ betrayed _ , I  _ raised you on my back _ , and this is what I get in return? I am  _ disappointed _ , Lee Minho,” He gives a fake sigh and sits down heavily on the couch. 

 

“Hi, hyung,” Seungmin says raising one hand. 

 

“I - I didn’t have time!” Minho protests, quickly turning red, as he’s found out he’s liable to do whenever Jisung and dating is mentioned within the same sentence. It’s a fault of his that he desperately needs to correct, but there are more pressing needs now, like assuring Chan he didn’t leave out that detail on purpose. 

 

Chan raises an eyebrow. “You have had exactly 24 hours to tell me - I waited for breakfast, but no; lunch is excusable since we didn’t have it together, but we had dinner together and you forgot to tell me?” He snorts then waves a hand, saying he’s kidding, and pats the seat next to him, telling Minho to sit down. “Tell me about it! I wanna hear it from you then from an unbiased source.” He neglects to mention that maybe he’s here because Jisung had begged him to go ask Minho if the date was okay and that Minho wasn’t just entertaining him and being nice. The things he does for his kids. 

 

“It was really nice,” Minho says, “I mean, he even asked you what restaurant I like to go to, and insisted on paying my bill though we split it in the end. Jisung is - he’s really sweet. He really is,” His voice trails off as he recounts the memories from last night, and a smile breaks over his lips.

 

“You’re so soft,” Chan cooes. 

 

“Yeah, you can see it in his eyes,” Seungmin says, watching Minho’s blush become more pronounced, “You’re really taken with him, aren’t you?” 

 

“I - I don’t know,” Minho says quietly, “I’ve known for only a week, and he’s only asked me out yesterday… I mean, there’s definitely attraction, and I admire his personality and his work ethic, but I don’t know, it seems all too fast to start liking someone.” He bites his lip, and curls up on the couch, arms around his legs. “Maybe - Maybe I will like him, but for now - for now it seems a bit like a crush,” He admits. The admission seems to breathe truth into him, and the first flutterings of butterflies stir in his stomach, catching his breath and spinning his imagination into overdrive.

 

Seungmin sighs, a fond sound that comes from the depths of his chest. “You really  _ are  _ wasted for him. It’s been a while since you had a crush.”

 

“Oh yeah, it’s been some time - the last time was… When I first entered university! It got old pretty fast though.” 

 

“Well, you’ve got another two weeks,” Chan says, “Two weeks of summer vacation before Jisung has to go back to the shithole we call university. You’ve got time to figure this all out.” 

 

Minho looks down at the carpet, focusing on the repeated patterns as the thoughts swirl in his mind. Yes, he’s just admitted he has a crush on Jisung; yes, he’s got two weeks left with Jisung, and a whole world of opportunities are there if he chooses to take them. Yet, he’s afraid. Afraid that he’ll end up falling for someone who won’t fall back, afraid that whatever delicate relationship they might form would fall apart when Jisung returns to the city. Sure, he’s optimistic, but he’s still anxious, still careful, and he doesn’t want to be heartbroken and left behind to pick up the pieces alone. 

 

“Take a chance,” Seungmin says suddenly, “I told Felix the exact same thing. If you both really want it, there’s no reason for it not to work out. You’re committed to the things you love, you know that - take a leap of faith, you’ll find happiness.” 

 

Perhaps Seungmin is right. He is, after all, Minho realises with a jolt, the same person who had endured being apart from Hyunjin for half a year when they had just got together. Hyunjin had been selected to go overseas for an exchange program in the United States for 6 months, and through deadly perseverance and unwavering trust, the couple had hit their nine month anniversary when Hyunjin returned. 

 

“Happiness could be just a door away, and you wouldn’t know because you didn’t dare to open the door,” Chan says softly, “I wouldn’t be with Woojinnie if I hadn’t been stupidly brave, so maybe you should be a bit stupid, be a bit brave, and see where it takes you.” 

 

“Aren’t I lucky to have friends who are dating,” Minho says, voice a little shaky and eyes a little glassy, “Thanks, guys.” He looks up at the choker he’d bought a few days ago when he was shopping with Jisung and his resolve strengthens bit by bit. “I will,” He says, feeling strangely at peace, “I’ll take a leap of faith, be a little brave. I think - I think it’ll be worth it,” He hugs a pillow close to his chest and hopes with all his might that he’s made the right decision. He really hopes it is.

 

* * *

 

Minho thinks he’s made the right decision, really. He thinks this when Jisung shows up on his doorstep at nine in the morning, a bouquet of flowers in hand and a shy blush. “Hi, hyung,” He says, not meeting Minho’s eyes whatsoever, “I - I just saw a flower shop when I was out walking and I thought it’d be nice to give you some.” He thrusts the flowers at Minho, blocking his own face. 

 

It is the most blatant lie ever. As far as Minho knows, the only flower shop in town is an hour away, and Jisung is more likely to have ordered them expressly for the flowers to be here so early in the morning. “Thank you,” He says brightly and choosing not to point out Jisung’s lie, “They’re beautiful.” Taking them, he sees that they’re a mix of red and white flowers, and though he only recognises the white calla lilies and red tulips among the other flowers in the bouquet, he loves them already. “What flowers are these?” 

 

“Um - the florist said the white ones are lilies and gardenias, the red ones are tulips and… er - amaryllis! I hope you like them,” He mumbles, scratching his neck. 

 

“Let me just put them somewhere and I’ll come out,” Minho calls, disappearing briefly back into his hut. 

 

“Look at Jisung freaking out because he only planned on giving Minho the flowers and nothing after that,” Changbin says, lounging on the benches that happened to give him a great view of the pair, camouflaged by a few plants. 

 

“I heard he woke up at 6 in the morning to get the flowers?” Jeongin says.

 

“Nah, he called them last night and asked them for them,” Chan corrects, “They delivered it 10 minutes ago as promised, but Jisung was really nervous so he accidentally woke up at 6 in the morning… And he woke you as well?” 

 

“He did,” Jeongin grumbles, “He went around clattering the whole morning and took a shower - which would have been, you know, okay if he didn’t drop about all the soap and shampoo bottles and groan loudly each time.” He rubs his eyes and stifles a yawn unsuccessfully. 

 

“Oh - are they going to the beach?” Changbin says suddenly, craning his neck to get a look at them without making it too obvious, “They’re going through the archway… Yeah, they are - Look away!” He adds hastily when Jisung swings his head around suspiciously, possibly having heard their voices. The three of them try to act inconspicuously, choosing to look at the garden instead; Jisung and Minho leave soon after, their figures becoming smaller as they walk away from the garden. 

 

“Ah, young love,” Chan says dreamily, eyes following the two entwined specks under the summer sun, “They compliment each other really well, don’t you think?” 

 

“They both love their work so much,” Jeongin points out, “They have similar points as well and their personalities rub well together. What made Jisung-hyung suddenly decide to start… pursuing - courting Minho-hyung? It seems really sudden, even if he liked Minho-hyung since the first day they met.” 

 

“I think it might have been because of you and Felix,” Chan says thoughtfully to Changbin, “Jisung probably saw how you guys got together, and it might have caused him to go ‘what if I can have that with Minho too’ and he just got his shit together, I suppose.” He watches a tiny ladybug land on his knee and carefully scoops it up, placing it on a nearby plant. 

 

“You might be right,” Changbin mutters, “But Jisungie recognises when he should take chances too, and it might have been entirely of his own will… It’s not like we can be entirely sure of what’s going on inside his head.” 

 

“Yeah,” Jeongin says, “Like you. Look at you, being all so cool and mysterious then you melt into a softie when Felix is around.” 

 

“It’s cute,” Chan interrupts as Changbin burns a bright red and splutters something about Felix being the cutest human being ever, “Don’t worry, Felix finds it cute too. Woojinnie told me.” 

 

“Told you  _ what _ ?” Changbin says, wary for his own good. 

 

“Felix told Minho, who told Hyunjin, who told Jeongin, who told Woojin, who told me, that he finds the way you blush around him very cute and he would too, melt in your presence… Or something like that. It was like playing a game of Chinese Whispers with no time limit.” To be fair, it happened over the course of last night and this morning, and they’ve kept Felix’s words as true to the original as they could, mainly because as Hyunjin said,  _ there’s no way you can forget someone spewing all this gross but lovely words about their partner _ . 

 

“You know, Minho-hyung and Jisung-hyung are not even dating yet,” Jeongin sighs, “Wait till they start dating, and they’ll outgross all of you by being the married couple of our group.” 

 

“Who’s the married couple of our group?” A voice asks from behind them. It’s Woojin and Felix, each holding a milkshake in hand. 

 

“Jeongin says it’s Minho and Jisung,” Chan says, shaking his head, “I can’t believe my own brother doesn’t know I’m married.” 

 

“We’re not married, are we?” Woojin asks, letting Chan sip his milkshake. 

 

“We’re a little married,” Chan says, “You know that.”

 

“I know that, and I love it,” Woojin agrees, kissing Chan’s forehead lightly. 

 

“Where’s -” Felix starts, then says, “ - oh, look it’s Minho-hyung and Jisung! I was gonna ask where they were.” 

 

“Jisung gave Minho a bouquet of flowers,” Changbin says, scooting over to let Felix squish in beside him, “He ordered them last night and they’re all red and white flowers… Do you think they mean something? Do you know anything about flower meanings, Lix?” 

 

Felix shrugs. “I know a few basic ones but we can search it up - I’m sure Minho-hyung asked what the flowers are so I can wheedle it out of him later… Hi guys! Where have you been?” He directs the last part of his sentence towards Minho and Jisung, who have arrived at the circle and miraculously, they’re holding hands. 

 

“Hi,” Minho says a little breathlessly, swinging their clasped hands back and forth a little, “We’re back! From our walk - it’s a really nice day out today, you know.” 

 

“I’ll bet,” Jeongin mutters dryly. 

 

“It was,” Jisung says, cheeks pink perhaps from exertion or otherwise. He exchanged a glance with Minho, and they smile, a small one that could mean anything, and turn back to their friends. Even the smallest things could be exciting if Minho was with him, and Jisung isn’t about to complain.

 

* * *

 

Jisung is ready to complain and wax his best about his complaints. He could make a song out of it and dedicate it to his university professor.

 

Either way, perhaps it’s the excitement that makes Jisung restless that night and he simply can’t fall asleep, no matter what he does. He’s brewed tea, tried meditation and listened to some calming songs but he won’t  _ fucking fall asleep already _ and he’s tired of trying. He’s also afraid that he’ll wake Jeongin, who had woken up early because of his nervous fumbling around in the morning and consequently made a lot of noise, so Jeongin needs to sleep. He stares at the clock on the wall for a few moments longer, its luminescent numbers and hands glowing the time for him dimly. It’s almost three in the morning and he can’t fall asleep. It’s the first time this week, and he’s almost gotten used to accepting the fact that he won’t be able to sleep well at least once a week for some reason only god will ever know. 

 

“I’m getting up,” Jisung says to himself a little resignedly, sitting up on his bed and running a hand through his hair, messy from tossing around. He just sits in the darkness for a few moments, staring out the window and makes a split-second decision to go for a run on the beach. It’s the second time he hasn’t been able to sleep since he came here, so he’s a little more familiar with the ways around here now. 

 

After locking the door, Jisung stares a little glumly at the night scene; the novelty of the lovely scenery wears off fast, and Jisung just wants to tire himself out and maybe get another four hours of sleep if he’s lucky. He rushes through the archway and takes himself down the beach, shoes throwing sand behind himself in his wake; there is no wind to howl at him this time, and the waves seem a little quieter, a little more tired, the stars twinkle a little less brighter, obscured by the clouds. 

 

Before he even knows it, Jisung’s passed by the tourist pavilions and the restaurant pavilions - he can even see the pavilion in which he first saw Minho. He slows down a bit, maybe out of hope, or maybe out of curiosity. Perhaps he wants to see someone, or he just wants to see Minho, he isn’t quite sure, but hope blooms so fast in his chest that it makes him dizzy with expectation and - he isn’t let down. 

 

Minho’s already there, already dancing; this time the dance is less serene and more angry, like he’s channeling all his frustration into each and every move and it comes off as jarring, though not stunted. But this time, Minho doesn’t dance like he did the first time. He dances like he wants to rip himself into shreds and build himself up again. There’s an incredible amount of frustration and anger underlying each movement, and he keeps stopping and repeating moves, like he isn’t satisfied with how he executed it. Each time he stops, he makes a small noise that Jisung attributes to irritance; it’s a sound he’s intimately familiar with. 

 

Though Minho is in this mood, he doesn’t want to be a creep again, so he approaches the pavilion hesitantly, Minho’s words resounding in his mind.  _ If you see me again, just call for me, I won’t bite. _ He takes the last few steps out from the darkness and into the dim lighting of the lamp. “Minho-hyung,” He calls quietly, not wanting to scare Minho too much, “I - It’s Jisung.” 

 

Minho gives a startled yelp, abruptly halting his dance, panting harshly for breath. “Wh - Jisung? What’re you doing out here at this hour?” 

 

“I could ask you the same, hyung,” Jisung remarks, still standing outside the pavilion. 

 

“Good point,” Minho says, seemingly on the edge of weary laughter. He looks at Jisung - all messy hair, dark circles smudged under weary eyes and wrinkled clothing - then smiles a little more sincerely. “I couldn’t sleep too, so I came out here… Come on, come in here - do you know how to dance? Dance with me!”  

 

Looking mildly surprised, Jisung steps into the pavilion hesitantly, feeling like he’s intruding on Minho’s private sanctuary. “Th - Thanks, hyung. And I’m not too good at dancing - I mean, not like your dancing, I don’t know how you do that,” He says, shaking his head a little admiringly. “The way you dance is like you’re expressing yourself, like how someone would express their feelings using words. I really admire that, you know.” 

 

Minho fidgets, his movements just discernible under the hazy light. “Thank you, Jisung. Dancing is - you need to be in tune with yourself, I guess.” He looks out the pavilion and into the restless night, “It would take ages for me to explain to you how I try to dance.” But his forehead is wrinkled and his expression pinched, like he doesn’t remember how he himself usually dances, let alone try to explain it someone else. 

 

“I’m listening,” Jisung says, following Minho’s lead and looking out into the wide expanse of the ocean. In this dark night, the sea and the sky seem to meld into one endless piece of onyx speckled with violet and raven. “I’ll listen to you,” Jisung repeats again, eyes sliding over from the ocean to Minho’s side profile. 

 

“I know,” Minho murmurs, “But this time… Watch me? If you won’t join me, I can try to show you.” He turns and meets Jisung’s gaze. He doesn’t ask why Jisung can’t sleep, doesn’t ask why Jisung thought it’d be smart to come out here at this ambiguous time of the night, doesn’t say much except fix Jisung with his brilliant gaze even though there’s hardly any light to see each other properly. 

 

“Okay,” Jisung answers after a while. 

 

Minho smiles briefly before his face falls into a neutral expression and he faces the scenery in front of them again. “The night’s a bit rougher than usual,” He says, voice so soft it blends in with the gentle whoosh of the waves, “Don’t you think so?” 

 

Jisung wants to look at the ocean too, wants to see what Minho sees, but he’s entranced by the way Minho looks in the lamplight and the silvery sheen of the faint moonlight. “It’s not as peaceful as the first night I came out,” He says, leaning against one of the pavilion pillars, “It seems more raw,” He adds, even though the words sound too poetic for them to be said out loud. 

 

“It is,” Minho agrees, arms stretched out and head raised to the sky now. Tonight, the weather is oddly in tune with his feelings, and the frustration he had with himself since his dance classes in the morning rises in his chest as a harsh gust of wind swirls in towards them. He closes his eyes. 

 

It’s Jisung who can’t close his eyes. 

 

The waves continue their unwavering way up and down the beach; the wind starts to blow a little harder, a little colder; the clouds clear away slowly with all the time in the world; the stars start to shimmer a little as the moon shines down benevolently. They are beautiful, yet Jisung looks at none of this. 

 

He looks at Minho moving through the coldness of the blowing moon, listens to the way his feet slide against the grains of sand on the pavilion floor and observes how the moonlight and lamplight filters through his hair and onto his figure. He watches Minho bring his feelings into physical form and craft movement after movement into a dance that is his own play. Jisung feels all his breath leave him in one fast rush - when did he hold his breath? - when Minho twirls towards him, just a teaspoonful of bravery away, and then - Minho is in front of him, coming to a stop and Jisung instinctively reaches forward to brace Minho steady. 

 

Jisung’s hands rest on Minho’s waist. 

 

“I thought you said you wouldn’t dance with me?” Minho says in a low tone, facing Jisung and his own arms hanging loosely by his side. He’s breathing heavily with the energy he put into his dance, though he doesn’t look at peace with himself, doesn’t seem to be satisfied with the dance.

 

“No,” Jisung says, searching the rich warm brown of Minho’s eyes and seeing something burn in them, “I watched this time.”  _ And I couldn’t look away _ . His hands must be cold on Minho’s waist, but Minho says nothing and meets his gaze steadily. 

 

The wind howls past them in a rush, blowing Minho’s hair into his face. Jisung reaches up tentatively, brushing a few pieces away just as Minho tries to do the same thing. Minho catches his hand and holds it, his hand cold like Jisung’s, but there’s still comfort in it. If their fingers slowly lace together like they’ve done before, none of them say anything about it.

 

“Next time,” Minho whispers, and Jisung almost does not catch it in the midst of the loud wind eavesdropping on them, “Next time you’ll dance with me.” 

 

Staring into Minho’s eyes is like a fierce autumn’s day distilled - glowing sun, red and yellow flickering in a gorgeous pool of warm brown - and Jisung is weak. There are smudges of black beneath his eyes that Jisung knows too well, and his eyelashes reach so far that they cast shadows on the highpoints of his cheekbones. “Okay,” Jisung says, “I’ll dance with you next time.” 

 

* * *

 

“Jisung’s knocked out like a light,” Changbin announces after he exits Jisung and Jeongin’s hut, “He simply won’t wake up. I say we leave him be… I don’t think he slept well last night if he’s in this deep of a sleep today.” He joins Chan and Woojin who have lagged behind the rest to wait for him, and they file into the dining hall, keen on having some breakfast. 

 

“Let’s pack some breakfast for him then,” Chan says, “We can leave it in the kitchenette so he finds it when he wakes up.” 

 

“By the way, what’re you guys doing today?” Changbin asks curiously as they sit down.

 

“We’re going on a date,” Woojin says, Chan too busy packing food for Jisung and therefore unable to answer, “Chan says he’s surprising me so I have no idea where we’re going… He only told me I shouldn’t eat breakfast because we’ll be having brunch.” He eyes Chan, who merely shrugs before tipping more food into the takeaway container.

 

“Which is why we’re not having anything to eat.” Chan says. “What are  _ you _ doing? Are you going to gatecrash our date?” 

 

“I have tact!” Changbin says indignantly, “I was just asking - Felix told me he would be busy for most of today so I’ll be in at home and see if I can do some work, because I have ideas and it’s about time I try to figure them out.” 

 

“Love songs, you mean?” 

 

“Whatever you wanna think,” Changbin replies with dignity. 

 

“Definitely love songs,” Chan says sagely.

 

They part ways after Changbin finishes his breakfast; Changbin, back to his hut for his favourite past-time (also to drop off Jisung’s food delivery) and Woojin and Chan to town, for a surprise date that Chan had apparently been planning since he found out he would be coming here with his partner. “It’s just down here,” Chan says, guiding Woojin down the street, “I wanted to bring you here because, well - when I was a kid I always saw this restaurant and my parents would always go there for their anniversaries, and I thought to myself that one day, I’d bring my special someone here too.” He laughs a little out of nervousness, “So I hope you like it, Woojinnie.” 

 

“You’re trying to make me cry,” Woojin says after a moment’s pause, sounding a bit hoarse, “You’re - You’re so sweet.” He leans in to place a quick kiss on the corner of Chan’s mouth, squeezing his hand, “I’m sure I’ll love it.” 

 

They stop by a restaurant that exudes class despite it’s homely frontage, with flower pots hanging by the both sides of the entrance and it’s name inscribed in elegant letting over the top. “The… Faerest?” Woojin says a little uncertainly. 

 

“Yeah,” Chan says, smiling, “And you’ll see why.” 

 

The moment they enter the restaurant, it feels like they’ve entered a beautiful, mythical forest. There are pots hanging down from the rafters, flowers spilling over the sides of the pot and they bloom like a rainbow across the ceiling; ivy vines grow on the exposed brick wall, small yellow and white flowers blooming intermittently with the dark green of the leaves; each table has a different arrangement of flowers and even the bar stools have flowers growing in the gaps of the wood. It all seems so incredibly ethereal, with the added fairy lights bringing a romantic glow to the restaurant, and the interior is suffused with a warm radiance that feels incredibly welcoming. 

 

“Welcome to the Faerest,” A waiter says, appearing by their side like magic, “Do you have a reservation or is it a walk-in?” 

 

“I have a reservation,” Chan says, “It should be under Bang Chan, for 10 o’clock.” 

 

“Right this way,” The waiter says, smiling, and leads them to a table near the windows, an arrangement of beautiful flowers crowning the table. “Call me when you’re ready to order.” 

 

It’s more than beautiful. “You’re amazing,” Woojin says, emotion caught somewhere between his chest and his throat. 

 

Chan grins, meeting his gaze over the table and takes his hand gently, thumb stroking the soft skin of Woojin’s hand and gaze radiating adoration. “You deserve the world,” He says in a low voice, “I can’t thank you enough for being a part of my life, Woojinnie,” 

 

If they end up not ordering anything for another half hour, then it’s only their waiter that knows. And if a few flowers are missing from the decorations, well - they were due to be changed anyway.

 

(They both have flower petals stuck in their hair. They couldn’t care less.)

 

* * *

 

“Was that Chan-hyung and Woojin-hyung going into The Faerest?” Seungmin asks peering at a couple walking through the doors, “Don’t you have to make reservations a week earlier for a table?” He catches sight of them standing at the reception as he and Hyunjin pass by.

 

“Oh yeah,” Hyunjin says as they turn a corner, leaving the restaurant behind them, “You have to, and I’m sure Chan-hyung made a reservation even before coming here, if what Felix tells us is true.” 

 

“Do you wanna go there one day?” Seungmin asks, feigning casual but looking for Hyunjin’s reaction out of the corner of his gaze.

 

Hyunjin eyes him. “Why? You’ve never really liked going to all these classy restaurants -”   
  


“Are you saying I have no class,” Seungmin hisses. 

 

“You prefer the cozier places, or to go adventuring, or have a picnic date,” Hyunjin says, “Remember when we went on our first date?” 

 

“We went to a restaurant,” Seungmin says and he’s starting to laugh, “What a disaster! Didn’t you nearly knock down a vase of flowers and I spilled juice everywhere? Are we still banned from entering that restaurant?” 

 

“Lifetime ban,” Hyunjin says, unable to suppress a smile, “But we found better places to have our dates, didn’t we?” He fondly recounts the various places they’ve been on dates around town - the ice cream parlour, the animal shelter, the beach, all their favourite coffee shops and the lemonade stalls. Just recollecting the memories makes him a little teary, realising how far they’ve come, and Seungmin is quick to clutch onto his arm, nuzzling his face into the crook of his neck. 

 

“You love being cheesy,” Seungmin says, giggling. They make their way to the small local park slowly, picnic basket heavy in their hands; the park is quiet - it’s a Wednesday, a weird day for anyone to be out in the park, especially at this time - and they find their usual spot unoccupied. “It’s such a lovely day,” Seungmin says, sighing a little as he lies back on the picnic cloth that Hyunjin had spread out on the grass. 

 

“It is,” Hyunjin agrees, staring at Seungmin and hearing only ‘lovely’ from Seungmin’s sentence, “You’re lovely.” The sun shines down on them and the tranquility of the park is interrupted only by their carefree laughter, soft conversation and the occasional chirp of a few birds. Hyunjin could spend the rest of his days like this - skin warm with sunshine and heart warm with affection, laughing with Seungmin and kissing his beauty mark. 

 

“You’re one to talk,” Seungmin says, finger tracing the shape of Hyunjin’s lips, “You don’t see yourself like I do.” He throws an arm around Hyunjin’s shoulders, both facing each other and lying on their sides. There’s only a few inches left between them, and Hyunjin’s body is warm under Seungmin’s arm. They lie under the sunshine and shade alternatively as the clouds roll over and exchange soft kisses, giggling into each others’ skin as they do so. 

 

They fall asleep under the sun, picnic basket lying a little forlornly a little ways away. And if a butterfly lands on Seungmin’s nose, then Hyunjin’s hair, none of them know. 

 

(But what Hyunjin  _ does  _ know is that the sunset filters through Seungmin’s red hair beautifully.)

 

* * *

 

It’s less peaceful the next day. “In case you forgot, you’re on  _ vacation _ ,” Chan says. He is obviously talking about Changbin forgetting food and water existed yesterday. 

 

“Doesn’t a vacation mean relaxing?” Changbin demands, “Why are you making us go hiking?” 

 

“It’s called urban hiking,” Chan corrects, “And it’s a new attraction around here - at least, that’s what Minho said -” Minho nods frantically, “ - And it’s just like hiking… except in an urban environment. The route here goes through the local park, starting at the beach and through much of the attractions in town, so we can hike  _ and  _ go sight-seeing at the same time! Isn’t that a win-win situation?”

 

“Yeah!” Minho interjects, “We start the trail at the beach, and we go around the city, pass all the neighbourhoods, through the park then we round off around the other end and finish smack in the city centre by the mall. It’s really nice - the trail is quite new, and you get to climb up a bank and jump down the other side -”   
  


“We get to  _ what _ ?” Jisung squeaks. 

 

“Climb up a bank and jump down the mall,” Minho repeats cheerfully, like he isn’t pronouncing his own demise, “All you need to bring is yourself, a good pair of shoes and we can go!” 

 

All of them end up being convinced to go on the urban hike, despite their initial misgivings, and they set off an hour after lunch. “You’re lucky the sun isn’t burning today,” Seungmin says, squinting up into the sky. He feels oddly flushed and hot, but he supposes it’s because of the hot weather. They stop by a trail off the beach that’s marked ‘Urban Hiking Trail’ - something they’ve looked past all the times they’ve been to the beach. 

 

“Do we start here?” Woojin asks a little uncertainly. 

 

“Yeah!” Minho says. Felix and him step onto the first steps of the trail, gesturing for the rest to follow them. “We’ve been on this when it first opened,” Minho explains, “If you don’t like heights - like me - I’ll tell you when not to look down,” He gives a little shiver, like he’s remembering what he’s been through as they climb up the stairs. 

 

“Hyung was paralysed with fright,” Felix says, “I had to physically guide him up the bank, though it’s not a very high climb.” 

 

“Great,” Jisung says under his breath, also rather terrified of heights himself, “Brilliant.” 

 

But it turns out fine, for the most part. The trail leads them up into town right beside the roads, separated by an endless stretch of railing. They pass by the part of town they are most familiar with, and into the other side of the city, with more residential and commercial purposes. 

 

“That’s the town hall,” Minho points out, “And opposite that is the market and further down is the supermarket, where we buy our groceries and stuff. Anything you can’t find in the supermarket, you’ll find in the market, is what we’ve been told growing up… We come by van,” He adds assuringly when Jeongin asks incredulously if they walk here, “It takes us more than 30 minutes to walk here, and besides, we can’t carry that much groceries all the way back.” 

 

They chatter throughout the trail, passing by the sports complex - the apparent mid-way point - before reaching the park. The trail leads them to a small stream and it ends abruptly before continuing on to the other bank. 

 

“We have to… wade a stream?” Jeongin asks slowly, eyeing the water with some trepidation.

 

“It’s a good thing we’re all wearing shorts then!” Chan says, before slipping his shoes and socks off, “C’mon, let’s cross -” He cuts himself off abruptly as he enters the water, yelping. “The water’s cold,” He says, gasping a bit before crossing the stream in a few strides. 

 

Bar for Felix, who’s ankle is a little wobbly and holds on to Changbin as he crosses the stream, they all make it to the other bank easily, drying their feet in the grass and under the sun. Donning their footwear once again after lazing about a bit, they continue their hike, following the dark grey paths out of the park and back into the town, this time round the edge of it. 

 

“It’s mostly businessy buildings this part of town,” Minho explains as more concrete buildings loom ahead, “And the council wanted to brighten it up a bit, so they lead the urban hike through here and incorporated a climb up onto the bank.” 

 

“This is the part hyungie doesn’t like,” Felix adds, “But really, all you do is scale up the bank using footholds, and it’s not very high - it’s like climbing a ladder and  then you can slide down the other end. It’s super fun! Of course, if you don’t want to do it, the trail leads straight past the bank too, so it’s more of a detour than anything else.”

 

“You aren’t allowed to go,” Minho says, frowning and looking at Felix, “Your ankle is still weak.”

 

“Yeah,” Felix agrees, docile, “So anyone who doesn’t wanna do it, you can stay with me!” Seungmin and Jeongin end up staying with; the former, because he felt slightly ill - probably from lying in the sun yesterday - and the latter because he didn’t feel like doing it. “Minho-hyung,” Felix asks, concerned, “Are you sure you’ll be okay going up again? The last time you went up…”

 

“I should be okay,” Minho says, even though he looks a little pale, “I have to guide them, right?”

 

“I’ll see you guys when the trail merges again!” 

 

So Minho leads them to the left fork and they come to the side of a glass building, one-storey high, and its main entrance facing the trail where Felix, Seungmin and Jeongin were walking. “These are the footholds,” Minho says, pointing out the sturdy looking footholds, “I assume you know how to use them. The ladder is available for use as well, and well, if you fall… It’s not far from the ground! The bank was designed to be wider rather than higher, which was why they decided to place the footholds here.” 

 

They all go up one by one, and it  _ does  _ seem easy, the footholds wide and climb short. “It’s a bit slippery,” Chan muses as he pulls himself up, being the first one to climb up. Then he forgets about it as Woojin’s head pops up behind him and he scrambles to make space for Woojin to climb up. Hyunjin follows them, pulling himself up without much fuss and lending Changbin a hand as he climbs up next. 

 

“I’ll go last,” Minho says, “And don’t look down, don’t look through the glass.” 

 

Jisung nods, slightly stiff, and reaches for the first foothold. It gets easier, he thinks, grabbing onto the next foothold as he goes, and in no time, he’s swinging himself up and onto the roof of the bank. “Come on up, hyung,” He calls to Minho, who doesn’t look very far from him, in all honesty. 

 

“Here I go!” Minho says, then Jisung watches as Minho climbs up, a little more familiar with it than them, having already done it once. He’s almost at the top and Jisung reaches out to grab Minho’s hand, to help pull him up; Minho raises his leg to find the next foothold and it’s a little higher than expected, so he shifts his leg a little higher and - 

 

“ _ Hyung _ !” 

 

Minho only makes a sound like he’s in pain and emits a whimper that makes everyone turn towards them. 

 

Jisung barely manages to catch Minho’s wrist, even as Minho holds onto the footholds with all his might. “Hyung, what happened?” He asks urgently, “Do you need help? Are you okay?” He sees shadows appearing from the side of the bank, and they’re security guards, approaching them and looking concerned. He knew there wouldn’t be no supervision around. 

 

“Cramp,” Minho says, teeth gritted, speaking into the wall, “Pull me up, Jisung.” 

 

Jisung does, arranging himself carefully and heaving Minho up. Minho manages to get his hand on the roof and with the other holding tight onto Jisung’s arm, he twists himself and sits on the edge of the roof, heart thumping too fast and hands clammy with cold sweat. He shuffles himself backwards, further onto the roof and stretches his leg out painfully - he hadn’t been counting on the fact that his dancing stint from two nights ago would affect him this badly. 

 

“Where’s the cramp?” Jisung asks, bending down next to Minho. 

 

Wordlessly, Minho points at his left calf, wincing. “Also - from - you know… My muscles are sorer than I expected.”

 

“Did you slip?” Chan asks as they all gather around Minho, “What happened?” They watch on worriedly as Jisung digs his fingers into Minho’s calf. 

 

“Muscle - cramp,” Minho says, words shaking with pain, “I didn’t think my muscles would be that sore.” He hisses when Jisung straightens his leg and massages it. “Thank you, Jisungie,” He adds when the cramp in his leg eases off bit by bit. He clings on to both Chan and Jisung and they pull him up into a standing position, with Minho testing his weight on his leg gingerly. 

 

“Can you walk?” Chan asks, “Should we call someone -”

 

“I’ll be okay,” Minho says, “It’s happened before, just maybe not in this situation.” He takes a deep breath and looks up, jutting his chin at their surroundings. “So this is the rooftop, and you get a great view of the town! We would have enjoyed this much better if I wasn’t like this, I suppose…” He laughs a bit before telling them to walk across to another gap in the railings. “This is the slide, where you go down and the trail converges again.” 

 

It’s lucky that it’s a slide, and not another climb, or Minho might have been stuck on the rooftop for a while. “I’ll go down first,” Hyunjin volunteers, “So I can catch Minho-hyung at the bottom,” He sits down on the slide, making a face at the slight wetness of it before pushing himself off the winding slide. Changbin, who’s small enough to fit with Minho on the slide, goes next, pushing off together. 

 

“You go first,” Chan says. So Jisung plops down on the slide, pushing himself off and hoping Minho’s out of the way already. He reaches the end without much fuss and gets off the slide with a little bounce in his step.

 

Minho’s already up and leaning on Hyunjin, pouting dramatically as Hyunjin gives him a lecture on learning what his body’s limits are. Chan, who’s just arrived, joins Hyunjin in lecturing Minho - by the time they rejoin the others, they’re still telling Minho he should be more careful next time. 

 

“What happened?” Felix cries, looking worried and jogging over to Minho, “Hyung, what happened? Did you actually fall off or something?” 

 

“Muscle cramped up as I was climbing up,” Minho replies wryly, “About as much fun as you can imagine. It’s lucky Jisung caught my wrist.” He’s also lucky he can walk a bit, but he doesn’t think he can last much longer, his legs feeling like they’re susceptible to failing any moment soon.

 

Felix just gives a sigh and fixes Minho with a stern glare. “I’m telling eomma,” He announces as they set off on the main trail once again, “You’re also lucky the bus stop is just here. You’re going to go back with Seungmin first.” There’s no possible way Minho can continue on the hike when his muscles are sore enough to cramp.   
  


“Why, what’s wrong with Seungmin?” Hyunjin asks immediately, turning towards his partner.

 

“I don’t feel very good,” Seungmin says a little apologetically, “I think I didn’t drink enough water and it’s pretty hot today… It’s  _ none  _ of your fault,” He adds firmly when Hyunjin and Chan open their mouths, “I forgot to take water with me, and I didn’t go into the shade yesterday when you told me to. I’ll go back with Minho-hyung first, so I’ll see you guys back at the resort!” He takes over supporting Minho, and they make their way to the small bus stop, waving the others off. 

 

“They’ll be okay,” Changbin says to Chan, who’s looking behind his back on every other step, “See - the bus is on the way already. They’re going to go back, Seungmin’s going to rest and hydrate himself, and Minho’s going to use some KT tape and not walk anywhere for the rest of today and tomorrow. Try to enjoy the hike now that you’re out.”

 

Though a little more subdued after Minho and Seungmin’s departure, Felix continues to brightly point out some of the places around this part of town. “There’s the church, and this is the school we went to until we graduated from high school,” He trails off, like he’s recounting memories from his years at said school. “The library is beside the school,” He continues, coming out of his reverie, “And the hospital is around the corner.” 

 

“You forgot the cinema,” Hyunjin says, pointing out a barely visible cinema complex in a street that they pass by, “The cinema here is bigger than the one in the mall, but it’s all the way on this side of town so we make do with the one at the mall.” 

 

As their urban hike draws to a close, they pass by the lemonade stand Minho had pointed out to Jisung all those days ago. The boutiques they visited flash by Jisung’s eyes and soon they find themselves heading towards the city centre, the mall looming bigger and bigger the closer they get. When they reach the large, flashy sign that reads ‘Congratulations on finishing the Urban Hike!” there are a bunch of wristbands in a box there. 

 

“Take some,” Felix says, “A souvenir as remembrance.” They do. They each pick the wristband in their favourite colours before squinting into the late afternoon sky and deciding where they’d go next. “I’m going to see Minho-hyung,” Felix says, “It’s been… 40 minutes, he should be resting by now.”

 

“I’ll go with you,” Hyunjin volunteers, “I need to check up on Minnie, see if he needs anything.” 

 

“We’re going to pick up some stuff for them,” Chan says, gesturing to himself, Woojin and Jeongin, “Minho just texted me and asked me to pick up some sports drinks and more KT plasters. I think he called you, Felix, but you didn’t pick up.”

 

Felix slaps his forehead. “My phone is always on silent and I always forget to turn it on,” He hisses, fishing his phone from the depths of his pockets. “Yeah, he did… Well, I’ll go back first anyway, see if he’s okay.” 

 

“I - I’m going into town for a bit,” Changbin says, shifting around a bit suspiciously, “I wanna hang around for a bit longer. I’ll see you guys back at the resort,” He says, making a move to slouch off. 

 

“Wait,” Jisung calls, “I’m coming with you,” Then they disappear into the thin throng of people crowding the streets near the mall entrance. They see Jisung’s bright orange hair bob in the midst of brown and black, before it disappears entirely. 

 

“They’re acting a bit shady,” Hyunjin says, frowning, “Did they see something they wanted to buy or something?” 

 

(They did. Jisung’s eye had caught something silver in one of the boutiques, and Changbin’s been waiting to buy that special thing Felix had mentioned he wanted the last time they were in town. Not like anyone has to know, right?) 

 

* * *

 

The next day, it is to no one’s surprise that Minho - Lee Minho, Lee Felix’s brother, the best graduate of his course at university, dancer Lee Minho, who bows down to no one and snubs authority in the face - is under house arrest. By his own mother and brother, nonetheless. That certainly doesn’t stop him from trying to weasel his way out of being confined within four walls though. 

 

“Let me go out,” Minho whines, scratching pointlessly at the KT plaster that’s plastered on his calf, “I’m begging you, Lixie, c’mon -”

 

“Then beg,” Felix says blandly and mercilessly, scrolling through his phone without a second glance. 

 

“Heartless,” Minho says, glaring at the ceiling. 

 

“For your own good,” Felix corrects, tone unchanged and still scrolling through his phone, “You put me on house arrest when I nearly needed the ankle brace, didn’t you?” 

 

“You were actually injured!” Minho says exasperatedly, “I’m not! Well - to a degree I am, but it’s only sore muscles -”

 

“And what are you going to do if I let you out?” Felix demands, looking away from his phone briefly. Minho gapes at him slightly but doesn’t answer - Felix takes the abrupt silence as Minho’s defeat and smiles smugly, returning to his phone. 

 

Blowing his bangs in frustration, Minho slumps over in the armchair and resumes staring boredly at the ceiling. It’s been painted with murals that he and Felix painted together over the course of a few years and it’s covered with flowers, stick figures - anything and everything that two children, then teenagers could paint; the murals give him an idea. “Felix,” He starts slowly, sitting up, “Take me outside! Isn’t there still a part of this hut that isn’t painted? We can paint something right now, can’t we?”

 

Felix stares at him, then sighs. “You… You’re right. I’ll take you outside and you can sit on the floor and paint or something.  _ You really did find something to do _ ,” He mutters the last part to himself under his breath. Getting up to support Minho, he leaves his brother outside and goes back inside to rummage for the paints that they haven’t touched for a while. It’s behind the old textbooks - from primary school! What on earth was it doing there - and to his relief, they’re still okay and they still stir well with no layer on top that indicates the paint has gone bad.

 

“Are you gonna stay with me?” Minho asks, on the grass and legs stretched out. 

 

“I have nothing to do,” Felix says airily, “Since eomma told me I’m exempted from resort duties because I have to watch over you and I have to make sure you don’t sneak off elsewhere.”

 

“I don’t need adult supervision,” Minho says, affronted, “I  _ am  _ the adult supervision. I am an adult.” 

 

“You need an adultier adult,” Felix counters, “Like Chan-hyung.” 

 

“What’s this about adult supervision?” Woojin asks, approaching them. He’s holding two sports drinks that he hands over to them. “Your eomma asked me to pass these to you guys, by the way.” 

 

“Thank you,” Felix chirps as Minho does the same. “I was talking about adult supervision for Minho-hyung, because he’s injured. He gets himself into all sorts of situations when he’s not, so I can’t imagine what he’d get himself into if he’s like this -”

 

Minho’s rebuttal is drowned out by the arrival of Chan, Changbin and Jisung. “What’s Minho doing on the floor?” Chan asks a little uncertainly, having not seen the paints beside Minho. 

 

“I’m painting,” Minho answers a matter of factly, twisting to get the pains and wincing slightly when he stretches his leg, “I have nothing to do, I’m on house arrest, and this part of the hut is still blank. So I’m going to paint and see where that takes me.” 

 

There’s a little silence, then Changbin speaks up. “Felix,” He starts, sounding a tad bit nervous, “Let’s go on a walk? Chan-hyung can watch Minho for a while,” He holds out his hand, a small smile on his face. Felix leaves with him, an inquisitive look plastered across his face, and they walk out the archway, out to the beach. 

 

“Go on,” Chan whispers, nudging Jisung in the ribs. 

 

Jisung gulps. He takes a few shaky steps, then crouches beside Minho, bangs falling into his eyes. “Hyung,” He says. Then he repeats it again louder as Minho doesn’t hear him the first time.

 

“Yes?” Minho says, looking away briefly from the leaf he’s painting on the hut. 

 

Jisung grapples with his words a bit, what he wants to convey slipping through his mind like an eel on jelly. “Well - I - After you went back first yesterday, we passed by some boutiques and - and I saw this.” He produces a box and hands it to Minho, who sets his paintbrush down cautiously.

 

Curiously, he opens the box to find a pair of mismatched earrings in it. One is an infinity symbol, and the other a dangling arrow. He touches them, a little amazed and beams up at Jisung when he’s done awing over it. “This is really pretty, Jisungie! Why’d you get me these though?” He traces the shape of the earrings like they’re made of a precious metal, not cheap silver-plated aluminium and holds them up so they reflect the sun’s rays. 

 

Jisung shrugs. “I - I saw them and I thought you’d like them,” He admits, “So I bought them for you.” It was mostly a way to get Minho to cheer up, since he’d been sulky about not being able to move around or dance for the next few days at the very least. 

 

“It’s really nice,” Minho says, closing the box and hugging it to his chest, “I really like it! Thank you, Jisungie,” He stresses, then tugs on Jisung’s sleeve. “Come here,” He adds abruptly, something like cunning in his voice.  

 

“Why?” Jisung says weakly, shifting closer, “Hyung - wh -” He cuts himself off, eyes widening with shock.

 

Minho is kissing his cheek. 

 

“Hy - Hyung?” Jisung stutters, fingers unconsciously touching the part Minho had kissed, “What - What was that for?” 

 

Minho shrugs. “Felt like it.” He places the box beside his phone, far away from where paint might splatter on it and picks up his paintbrush again, eyes crinkling with the force of his smile. “Wanna paint with me, Jisungie?” 

 

Jisung agrees, and for some reason, the paint ends up on their faces as well as on the wall. Jisung’s cheek is smeared with green paint and Minho has pink paint on his forehead. On the wall is a small mural of some flowers surrounded by leaves and it’s lovely with the charm that comes with handmade works. Somehow, time passes faster when he spends it with Jisung, and even the pain fades into background music. Perhaps being cooped up would be slightly more tolerable now. 

 

* * *

 

Minho takes everything he said yesterday back. It’s only the second day of Minho being on house arrest, but he’s already bored to death and has nothing to do.

 

Scrolling through his phone gives him that much distraction, and the weather outside is so nice that it seems to be a shame to be stuck inside. If he had his own way, he’d be outside in the garden at the very least, enjoying the cool breeze and cloudy sky, a merciful break from the constant sunshine that has finally become too hot. Unfortunately for him, he most definitely does  _ not  _ have his own way, which is why Chan is eyeing him beadily from the other sofa, having been assigned to watch over him an hour previously. 

 

(Have the rest of his friends set up an hourly schedule to look after him and Seungmin, who had a fever? He doesn’t know, but if they have, it’s a nice thing to do when they’re supposed to be on vacation.)

 

“I want to go out,” Minho says baldly, glancing longingly outside the window, “I can walk - I’m better already! I don’t even need to use the KT tape, hyung.” He swings said leg, finally free of all the KT tape that frankly, he hates putting on. 

 

“You nearly fell over when you went to breakfast,” Chan says, reminding Minho’s memory-selective self that he  _ indeed _ , nearly toppled over into a waiter at breakfast because he had walked a little too long a little too fast. “Then your legs collapsed and you  _ did  _ fall down… Just on to the floor and not the waiter, thankfully.” He remembers the panic he felt when Minho went down like that, but now it’s slightly funny, especially when he remembers Minho’s annoyed expression, as if collapsing on the ground like that wasn’t a major cause for concern and merely a minor irritation.   
  


“Small miracles,” Minho grumbles, glaring at his legs. “Hyung, can’t you just take me outside? It’s been a while since lunch, it’s hot in here and cool out there - I won’t walk around, I can just sit on the benches in the garden - go on, hyung, please?” He ends on a sweet plea and smiles hopefully at Chan, fluttering his eyelashes a few times for good measure. 

 

“No,” Chan says. 

 

Minho hears the weak note in Chan’s refusal, so he waits a little longer, smiles a smidgen more brightly and waits for Chan’s final verdict. The silence stretches between them, one hopeful and the other contemplative. 

 

“I - Alright then,” Chan hedges, despite Minho having said nothing at all, “It’d do you some good to go outside… But the first moment your leg cramps or hurts and you come back in here to rest, okay?” He finishes sternly, but Minho hears none of it. 

 

“Yay!” He cheers, throwing his hands in the air and immediately attempting to stand up from where Felix had deposited him after lunch. 

 

“ _ Minho _ !” Chan yelps, throwing his book aside and leaping up to hold Minho, who brushes him off impatiently. 

 

“I can walk, it just hurts to walk fast and far,” Minho says for what must be the umpeenth time since his leg cramped on the urban hike. Still, he leans on to Chan and hobbles out the door, legs feeling uncomfortably stiff; since he doesn’t want a repeat of what happened at breakfast, he lets Chan guide him to whichever bench the other deems suitable, as long as he gets the sunshine, he doesn’t mind. 

 

“Thank you, hyung,” Minho says gratefully, sitting down slowly and letting his arms catch his weight as he settles onto the bench. It’s the one that’s facing the archway to the beach beside his own hut, which is why he can spot a few figures drawing into sharp resolution from blurry figures as they come back from the beach. 

 

“You’re out!” Jeongin calls when he spies Minho on the bench, “Does that mean you’re not on house arrest anymore?” 

 

“He wishes,” Chan butts in, “He wanted to come out and promised he would stay put outside, so I brought him here. Did you guys have fun?” 

 

Jeongin nods enthusiastically. “Felix showed us how to get to the beach when we’re in town, and before that we went shopping! I got a few things for you hyung, but so did Woojin-hyung - I hope you like them! I’ll put them in your room first for later,” He adds, then dashes off to Chan’s hut. 

 

“You guys didn’t,” Chan says with awe in his voice, addressing this to Woojin, who’s shaking sand from his shoes. 

 

“We did,” Woojin says, smiling and the breeze cards through his hair gently, “Come on, I’ll show you.” Chan leaves with Woojin, and Jisung sits down beside Minho, who turns and sets his feet on Jisung’s lap. 

 

“I’m bored,” Minho says, despite having gotten his wish of coming outside, “I have nothing to do. Where’s everyone else?” 

 

“Seungmin’s asleep,” Jisung starts, counting everyone off, “Changbin-hyung’s with Hyunjin at the mall doing who-knows-what and Felix is working. What do you wanna do, hyung? I mean - there’s not much you can do with your legs like this, can you?” He taps Minho’s calf lightly, not wanting to hurt the other. 

 

Minho frowns slightly, squinting at the plants beside Jisung, before a thought occurs to him. He almost kicks Jisung’s chin in his excitement. “I got it!” He says loudly, squirming around until Jisung presses his arms on his legs to stop him from actually kicking him, “I’m cashing in on your promise, Jisungie - take me out on a date!” 

 

Jisung’s jaw unhinges for a moment. “I - You - Hyung you’re  _ injured _ ! What part of ‘you can’t walk’ do you not understand?”

 

“Exactly none of it,” Minho says with a straight face, “Take me on a date, or I’ll take  _ you  _ on a date. And if I get to choose where we’re going, we’re going to be walking around town, so take your pick.” 

 

“You know, I would much prefer to go on a date when my date isn’t injured,” Jisung says wryly, “But if you insist - let’s go to a restaurant again or something… Do you wanna go to the restaurant that has those pavilions out there by the beach? You miss the beach, don’t you?” 

 

“You’re the best,” Minho says affirmatively, swinging his legs down and leaning over to hug Jisung tightly. “Now let’s go!” 

 

“What, right now?”

 

“You know it’s going to take me forever to change and walk there like  _ this _ \- it’s already five thirty - help me up, please?” 

 

They end up arriving at the restaurant at six thirty, because as Minho rightly predicts, he can’t walk fast, and even though the walk is only 15 minutes from the main road, it takes them much longer. Even with Minho gritting his teeth and soldering onwards, the pain becomes unbearable and they take a few stops every now and then. By the time they reach the restaurant, they’re both starving, and Minho looks ready to collapse.

 

“Are you okay?” The receptionist asked, looking faintly alarmed, “Let’s get you a seat quickly… For two?”

 

Jisung leans over the counter. “Is it possible to get the outdoor booths? My… My date likes the beach and he’s been sulky about not seeing the beach or walking around while he’s on house arrest.”

 

The receptionist laughs a bit. “Yeah, sure - let me take you round this way to the booths.” She guides through the restaurant, all fairy lights, white, airy and blue-tiled, out to the booths at the back. One of them is occupied, the other empty. “Here you go,” She says, “The bell’s there if you’re ready to order. I hope you enjoy your evening here,” She smiles once again and leaves them to it. 

 

“It’s so nice,” Minho says in awe, “I never realised how nice it was from the beach.” Rightly so, because the booths were raised on steps from the beach, and it gives them a beautiful view of the azure ocean, waves rolling in tirelessly. 

 

“It is,” Jisung says. 

 

They bicker over what they order, even though they end up sharing everything they order, and as night falls, the lamps around them glow brighter, shadows dancing on the beach as they push their plates away. With the fake ivy and flowers hanging round the perimeter of the booth, it gives them a sense of privacy yet it doesn’t shield them from the outside, and soon Jisung is lost in Minho. 

 

As they talk, a soft breeze blows in, blowing Minho’s bangs into his eyes and Jisung shifts forward to brush them away. His hand falls from Minho’s hair to his cheek, and then his fingers slide over the apples of Minho’s cheeks and he’s cupping his face tenderly. 

 

“What are you doing?” Minho says. Having been silent all this while, his voice has dropped to a quiet tone, like he’s afraid he’ll break the spell. 

 

“Looking at you,” Jisung says simply. 

 

Minho’s gaze was once hard to meet, all bright brown and golden glints, but now Jisung can’t look away. “You keep looking at me ever since we met,” Minho says, words muffled slightly into Jisung’s palm, and he turns his head, kissing Jisung’s palm lightly. 

 

Jisung’s hand leaves his cheek and grasps Minho’s hand instead, pulling it towards him and pressing his lips to the back of his head. “I know,” He says, words traced into Minho’s skin like a promise, “But I can’t look away. Is that a bad thing?” 

 

“No,” Minho muses, “I don’t think it’s a bad thing at all.”  _ Because I can’t look away from you too _ .   
  


* * *

 

 

While Jisung has lost count of how long he’s been staying at the resort; Jeongin knows, for some odd reason. 

 

“It’s cause Chan-hyung knows,” Jeongin says. He’s face down in a pillow on the sofa, having assumed that position ever since they came back from lunch and hadn’t moved an inch since. “He’s like, keeping count of the days we have left here, and apparently we don’t have long left, so he says we should go for a campfire again.” 

 

“Didn’t we just do that?” Jisung asks, who’s sense of time is often bad and has long since confused the events of several days into a single day. 

 

“That was nine days ago, according to Chan-hyung,” Jeongin addresses this to his pillow. 

 

Jisung stares at his phone blankly. “That - That’s really long ago. Have nine days already passed?” It seems much shorter, like his days and nights have blended together and the memories that rush to the forefront of his mind seems to have been created in a much shorter span of time than it seems. 

 

His phone breaks the silence, the familiar chime that he’s received a notification resounding through the room. Reaching for his phone, Jisung unlocks his phone and stares at the message, cheek squished on the armrest of the sofa. “Chan-hyung texted me,” He says, “Told me that we should be ready by eight for the campfire… So we have three hours,” He yawns and rolls over on the sofa. “I’m going to take a nap, wake me up at eight.” 

 

He does not hear the, “No promises,” that Jeongin mutters. Mainly due to the pillow he puts over his ears, but also because he  _ does _ fall asleep. Whether he fell asleep that easily was due to his lack of sleep the night before is Another Different Thing Entirely. 

 

Jeongin fulfills his ‘no promise’ promise. 

 

Jisung wakes up suddenly three hours and eighteen minutes later when a loud airhorn blasts at what seems to be right beside his ear. “ _ What the - _ ” He shouts, dissolving into incoherent curses and looks up from the sofa, squinty-eyed at the figures around him and also the bright lights. “What time issit…” He mutters, yawning once again and reaching for his phone. 

 

“Time to get up,” Woojin says. He is not holding an airhorn. 

 

“Yea,” Seungmin says. He is holding an airhorn. He is also wearing a threatening look. 

 

“Okay,” Jisung grumbles, deciding he won’t pick a fight. For now. 

 

Following Woojin and Seungmin out of his hut, they make their way to the beach and halt at the same firepit they had used some time ago, according to one questionable source. The campfire is already dancing away merrily, flames leaping high and casting shadows on the sand; everyone’s sitting around, fiddling with the food and barbequing - read as  _ attempting to barbeque _ \- said food. If Jisung’s going to be honest, only Hyunjin and Chan are doing okay. 

 

“You’re here,” Chan greets, “You’ll have to wait for the food. Minho and Changbin almost set themselves on fire when we let them try to cook - well, Changbin’s off canoodling with Felix and Minho is out there, enjoying freedom.” He points towards the beach, where a figure is splashing in the water and loud giggles are heard. 

 

“I’m - I’m gonna go there,” Jisung says, hoping he doesn’t seem too obvious, but Hyunjin gives him a look and he tamps down the urge to blush. Instead, he takes quick paces over to Minho, who draws into clearer relief once Jisung gets close enough. 

 

Minho’s just playing in the water, but it looks oddly like he’s dancing. The moonlight ripples over the water he stands in and each droplet that he throws into the air, for a brief moment, is pure liquid silver and it breaks over his hair and his clothes, tiny silver droplets clinging fast to him. 

 

“Minho-hyung,” Jisung calls, stepping closer so that the waves are just out of his feet’s reach. 

 

Minho stops splashing the water and turns his head. His figure is silhouetted in moonlight and he looks ethereal, shrouded in silver and looking every bit like an other-worldly being. “Jisung,” He says, breaking into a smile, “You’re here! And I’m better, look!” He adds, giggling and swinging his legs up to kick some water into the air. 

 

Jisung tries not to be too pleased about the fact that Minho’s wearing the earrings he gave to him yesterday. “You are,” He says, smiling, “But aren’t you hungry? I heard from Chan-hyung that you and Changbin-hyung nearly set yourself on fire trying to barbeque the meat.” 

 

“As you can clearly see, I prefer the water,” Minho says, sticking his tongue out at Jisung childishly. “Is the food done already?” Minho treads out of the water, grimacing at the sand that sticks to his feet; they walk back to the warmth and light of the campfire where everyone’s gathered and eating. 

 

“They’re here!” Hyunjin crows, “Ask them, ask them!”

 

“Ask what?” Jisung says suspiciously, a skewer of barbequed meat risen halfway to his mouth. 

 

“We’re playing a game,” Chan supplies helpfully, “Though I have no idea who started it in the first place.”

 

Jisung has a pretty good guess, by the way Seungmin is eyeing him. “What’s the game?” He takes a mouthful of meat - it’s pretty good, actually - and chews slowly, starting to get suspicious of everyone.

 

“We’ll show you,” Felix says, “Hyunjin has yet to answer, so don’t change the subject.” He points the skewer threateningly at Hyunjin. 

 

Hyunjin throws his hands up in the air in surrender. “Okay, okay - so I’ll… kiss Changbin-hyung, marry Seungminnie and - yeah.” He says apologetically. 

 

“You’d kill  _ me _ ,” Felix says, placing a hand on his chest like he’s been mortally offended. 

 

“I know you too well - you’re like a brother,” Hyunjin defends himself, “I’m not going to kiss or marry my brother, am I? Anyway, I pick… Minho-hyung! Hyung, kiss, marry or kill - Jeongin, Seungmin and Jisung.” 

 

“That’s easy,” Minho says, taking his second skewer of meat, “Kiss Jeongin, kill Seungmin and marry Jisung.”

 

Jisung chokes on his meat as Changbin thumps his back emphatically. “Maybe keep the surprises for when Jisung isn’t eating,” He advises Minho, who looks none too concerned. 

 

“He’ll get used to it,” Minho says around his mouthful, “Don’t worry, he’ll be fine. Do you want some water?” He passes a bottle of water to Jisung, and targets Woojin next, asking him the same question and throwing everyone’s name - except Chan’s - at him, waiting for his answer. 

 

Jisung, who by now is at no risk of choking, puts his finished skewer down and joins the chatter as Woojin apologises to Hyunjin and promptly says that he’ll marry Felix. “What?” He says, defending himself, “Felix is a nice kid, and I never said I’d kiss any of you.” 

 

“Is it cause Felix is Chan-hyung’s cousin?” Jisung asks, then scrambles out of reach of Woojin’s skewer. He laughs brightly when Felix turns on Woojin, scandalised. 

 

Beside him, Minho watches, rather captivated. Jisung’s blonde hair seems almost fiery red in the fierce flow of the campfire, his smile is brighter and warmer than any fire Minho’s ever seen. Perhaps it is at this exact moment that Minho realises he likes Jisung very, very much; maybe it’s that moment, or when Jisung gives him the last skewer, or when he flirts with him badly when he’s given a dare, or when it’s nearly midnight and Minho is about to fall asleep and Jisung is there, holding him up so he doesn’t face-plant into the sand. 

 

But if Minho’s sure about one thing, it’s that he  _ knows  _ that he really, really likes Jisung by the time they bid each other goodbye outside Minho’s hut. Jisung smiles and says, “You’re so cute when you’re sleepy, hyung,” Then he brushes Minho’s bangs away from his eyes, smile growing softer and fonder, “I’ll see you tomorrow, hyung.” He closes the door for Minho. 

 

_ It’s not fair _ , Minho thinks as he operates on autopilot to get ready for bed,  _ It’s not fair that he smiles brighter than the sun, or he’s so cute, or that he’s so likable _ . The nagging feeling that he’s had for the past few days hits him intensely as he lies in bed, eyes almost closing but brain still whirring at full speed. Then - a sudden realisation. 

 

_ Oh _ . The realisation goes.  _ I have - a very big crush on Han Jisung _ . The impact of his realisation isn’t all that groundbreaking; it’s more of acceptance than it is shock.  _ I like Jisung _ . It sounds right, he muses, dropping off into sleep, his thoughts crowded with blurry memories of the night and mostly Jisung, shining brighter than any kind of fire he’s seen.  

 

* * *

 

Minho wakes up the next morning and the first thing he remembers from last night is Jisung. Opening his windows, he looks out at the view slightly listlessly, wondering why he can’t seem to appreciate it like he usually does. He feels a bit weary, like he hasn’t slept when he’s sure he has. 

 

With the realisation that he has a huge, fat crush on Jisung also comes with the need to share it with someone who will listen to him and give him advice, if they possibly could. Someone who would listen to him and possibly tell him to do something before it’s too late. Minho isn’t all that oblivious - he has a feeling his crush is returned, what with all the dates, and if nothing happens, Jisung is due to go home in less than a week. So obviously, he goes to the best person there is. 

 

“You want impartial advice and you came to  _ me _ ,” Seungmin says with a faint air of surprise. 

 

“You talk feelings well,” Minho says vaguely. He hugs a pillow close to his chest, legs pushing Seungmin’s calves; they’re in Seungmin and Hyunjin’s hut, where Minho had barged in some ten minutes previously. It’s still early in the day - he couldn’t fall back sleep after he woke up, he knows Seungmin wakes early and Hyunjin doesn’t - which was also one of the reasons why he snuck out at seven in the morning to find Seungmin. 

 

They stew in the silence occasionally broken by the tinkle of the windchime that Seungmin had hung up in the open window. The quiet stretches between them, each passing second becoming heavier and heavier, until Minho feels almost afraid to open his mouth, though he doesn’t know why. 

 

“Don’t keep it all in,” Seungmin says, his voice soft, “Just - Just talk a bit, and you’ll find it easier to continue,” He reaches over to grab Minho’s hands, looking into his eyes encouragingly. 

 

“Okay,” Minho says in a small voice, “I mean - I just - I’m scared,” He says, thousands of words poised on his lips as soon as he starts speaking, and he blurts them out in a rush. “I’m scared that we don’t have enough time, and he’ll go back to the city and we’ll grow apart and I won’t remember how much he means to me, and I’ll know what it’s like to be heartbroken and I don’t want him to hurt as well -” He takes a deep breath, feeling like he’s on the edge of a nervous breakdown then, “ - I like him  _ so much _ that it’s scary. I’ve never liked someone this much this fast, and - and I’m  _ scared _ . Then I haven’t been dancing well, I haven’t been able to see if I can do anything about it because of my legs and I’m worried about that too, and I’m still so scared about everything.” He finishes, breathing out slowly and closing his eyes. He doesn’t know when he’s been holding Seungmin’s hands this tightly. 

 

“It  _ does _ feel scary,” Seungmin agrees after a beat, after making sure Minho’s okay, “If you don’t want to hurt him, I’m sure he doesn’t want to hurt you too,” He starts off, “A relationship is scary, but if you trust him and it’s mutual, it’s less scary.” The grip of Minho’s hands on his must hurt, but he grips back just as tightly, providing assurance. “I can’t vouch for what your relationship will be like, but if he already makes you this happy, I don’t see why you shouldn’t take a chance. A summer relationship doesn’t need to remain that way - it’ll only remain that way if you let it.” He chances another try, this time about the dancing. “Also, your dancing… I’m sure Hyunjin and Felix would help you out in a heartbeat if you so much as even mentioned it.”

 

“And - And if it doesn’t work out?” Minho asks, voice a tiny whisper against the tinkling of the windchime, head bent over. 

 

“You won’t have any regrets,” Seungmin says simply, “You get the best things in life by trusting.” He gets the feeling that he’s gotten through Minho’s deepest fears about this when Minho’s head bends so far he rests on Seungmin’s shoulder and a muddle of _ I’m still scared but I want this, thank you, I didn’t know I needed to hear this, I’ve been having problems with my dancing for a while now _ falls from his mouth and he starts crying, the strain and weight of his insecurities and fears that had accumulated now leaving him slowly. 

 

Seungmin’s shirt sleeve becomes damp with tears and his arms wrap uncomfortably around Minho so that they ache after a while, but he doesn’t care. They sit there for what seems like ages; Minho, crying silently and shaking slightly, Seungmin, holding him and assuring him under his breath. “You’re okay,” Seungmin says, hugging Minho fiercely and Minho clutches back just as tightly, “You’re okay. You’ll be okay.” He can’t say that he can solve Minho’s dancing slump - which he suspects were the root of his distress - or that his relationship will be smooth-sailing, but he does know Minho will be okay, eventually, and everyone would be there for Minho, whatever happens.

 

And Minho trusts him, believes him. Hyunjin too, when for no reason, the other comes up to him after breakfast and engulfs him in a hug that must last for what seems like five minutes. 

 

“Hyunjin?” Minho asks, a little surprised. “We’re standing in the middle of the garden…”

 

“I love you, hyung,” Hyunjin says as he pulls back, looking at him squarely in the eye, “Remember that, hyung. You’re loved. If you need help or anything, I’m here.” Each word strikes Minho through the heart and he becomes a little weepy-eyed. 

 

“I - Thank you,” Minho says, “I - I think I wanna go to the dance studio… Are you free?” 

 

Hyunjin nods, so Minho sets off to find Felix. He finds his younger brother talking with Seungmin, and the moment Felix realises he’s in ear shot, he breaks off conversation with Seungmin to tackle Minho in a tight hug. “Hyung,” Felix says, and Minho’s reminded of his baby brother, the one he saw growing up and the one he said he would protect forever (though it’s evolved into snarking and smarting each other over the years), “Hyung, don’t forget about me.” 

 

Maybe his baby brother is the one protecting him now. 

 

“How could I?” Minho asks lightly, though he feels weak-kneed with relief. “I was gonna ask if you if you wanna come with me and Hyunjin to the studio - I wanna see if I can do anything about this slump.” 

 

“You’re gonna be okay,” Seungmin says again when Felix says he’ll join and dashes off to change into something more comfortable. 

 

“I’m getting there,” Minho agrees, raising his head to look into the sky. A few white birds flock across the brilliant blue sky. The weather is so lovely that it seems to mock him; he can’t find it in himself to enjoy the view as much as he can, but he finds that he likes the breeze that blows softly, and he likes the too-hot midday sun as well. He thinks he likes the feeling that he’s getting better. 

 

(He finds that he starts to like things he forgot he liked. For example, the flowers Jisung brings him like he did last time; he likes the over-promoted dish their resort aggressively shoves in each guest’s face; he likes the old pavilion he dances in again and traces the murals that have faded with age. He doesn’t remember when he forgot he liked these things, but he likes them again, and the feeling of rediscovering something he likes… He doesn’t think he can afford to forget them.

 

They are the little specks of lights in the midst of his uncertain, abrupt darkness, and they make it easier to start getting better - he has something to look forward to. His brightest light, however, is human-formed, and brings aforementioned flowers with a little note in it that sounds oddly like it’s from a song. 

 

“I’ll show you the song I wrote,” Jisung says shyly, “I hope you like it. It’s ready.” 

 

After crying, Minho doesn’t feel much inclined to be all that emotional about everything, but this makes him smile, excitement untainted by heaviness building in his chest. “I’m sure I’ll love it,” He says. It’s the most hopeful thing he’s uttered today, and it gives himself hope. Hope that he’ll be okay, hope that they will be okay. 

 

Jisung’s smile is something he’ll keep as a precious memory, take it out to turn over and over again when he’s in the clutches of the dark and he can’t remember what it’s like to be happy. He’ll be okay soon enough.)

 

* * *

 

Minho is not a self-proclaimed genius even though he happens to dance well and learn fast. He also does  _ not _ show anyone his self-choreographed dancing unless he’s confident, but those rules can be bent slightly if you’re Han Jisung, and especially if said Han Jisung gives him a song that’s been written for him and with him in mind. (It also helps that he likes Han Jisung.)

 

His mind is clearer than it was yesterday before he talked with Seungmin. There isn’t a weight at the back of his head that presses him whenever he has a free moment - Seungmin had been right in that he would feel better once he talked. He had spent most of yesterday morning and today morning in the dance studio with the song Jisung had given him. 

 

He doesn’t know how Jisung did it, but he’s reminded irresistibly of the first time that they hung out together. He remembers the boutiques, the silver choker, the lemonade stall and the fiery glow of the sunset. If he closes his eyes and loses himself, he hears the washing of the waves and the crackling of the campfire, the laughter of his friends under the sun and the whispered conversations under the moon. It evokes such a strong sense of nostalgia in him that it renders him incapable of movement the first few times he listens to it. 

 

Minho doesn’t let Felix and Hyunjin listen to it, perhaps because Jisung only meant it for him, or perhaps he wants to be a little selfish and have his own time to for a while. He promises himself he’ll let them listen to it as soon as he figures out what he’s going to do with it. 

 

Maybe the timing of the song’s arrival is the best timing it could ever have. He pushes himself, tries to break himself out of his slump by choreographing the song. It is not pretty. He is seized with the urge to kick the mirror several times, curses countless times and almost breaks down in tears when he isn’t satisfied with what he’s seeing. Yet perseverance is something that has propelled him throughout his entire degree, so he squints at the mirror through his sweaty bangs and repeats each choreography sequence tirelessly.

 

The phone chimes, effectively breaking his concentration (though he admits that he does get distracted rather easily).  _ Get the fuck out of there, you need to eat something _ , the text message from Chan says. Minho considers this, and decides Chan is probably right. Besides, fresh air could do him well. He leaves his gym bag in the lockers and stretches as he steps into the mild sunshine. 

 

“There you are,” Chan says, materialising from nowhere. 

 

“ _ Hyung what the - _ ” Minho shouts, arms raised defensively on instinct. “Don’t scare me like that,” He complains, his heart calming down after the pseudo jumpscare. 

 

“Weak hearted,” Chan mutters, “C’mon, let’s get you some food. I haven’t seen you since you rushed off before breakfast - what’re you doing that’s so pressing?” 

 

“Dancing,” Minho says vaguely. “Can we go to that coffee shop there? I like their sandwiches…” They step into yet another coffee shop, this one simple and plain and they choose from the sandwiches on display. Opting to sit outside, they slowly unwrap their sandwiches and eat them silently, one immersed in his thoughts and the other contemplative. 

 

“Jisung’s gift is nice,” Chan says. 

 

Minho looks up, wide-eyed.  _ Did Jisung tell Chan he gave a song to me _ ? 

 

“Your earrings,” Chan clarifies, “They’re nice - did Jisung tell you? He doubled back to town that day after the hike to get them for you.” 

 

“He - He did,” Minho says, “It was really nice of him.” 

 

Chan leaves once he makes sure Minho has eaten more than two sandwiches, and extracts a promise from him that he’ll be there for dinner tonight. Minho nurses his hot chocolate thoughtfully as he walks slowly back to the studio, mind whirring at top speed. By the time he reaches the studio, he’s finished his drink but he’s also come to a decision and he’s going full steam ahead. 

 

Which is why he spends the next few hours blasting the song so loud through his earphones that he nearly goes deaf and goes over the choreography again and again doggedly. He tries to remember how he would teach the people in his dancing class, and repeats the advice to himself; perhaps it works, perhaps it doesn’t - an audience would have a better view of how he presents his dance. Recording and monitoring his dance only goes that far, and it mainly helps him to spot the mistakes he makes.  

 

Still, time doesn’t wait for him - it feels much less than five hours that he has spent in the studio, as he realises when his phone rings incessantly for five minutes until he realises it’s already half past seven and he made a promise to be at dinner. He hasn’t even showered yet.

 

“I’m  _ coming _ ,” He addresses his phone as he comes out of his ridiculously quick shower, which is still going off with the fourth incoming call from Chan, “Stop with that noise.” He snatches up everything in sight and makes a quick item count, backtracking when he realises he’s forgotten his hat. 

 

“I’m  _ coming _ , stop ringing,” He grumbles, phone shrieking at ear-killing levels. He declines the call and breaks into a jog, wet hair spraying water everywhere, wanting to get there before Chan decided to call  _ again _ . He is rewarded with a few minutes of silence, but as soon as the resort draws into his line of sight, his phone goes off again - this time it’s Jisung’s name that flashes on his screen. 

 

He picks it up. 

 

“ _ Hyung _ ?” Jisung says, his voice sounding different over the phone, “ _ Are you coming for dinner? Chan-hyung said you would and he’s already called a few times _ .” 

 

“I am,” Minho confirms, footsteps slowing into a brisk pace, “I’m just reaching the resort - I lost track of time -”   
  


“ _ I’m waiting outside the resort… I don’t see you _ ?” Jisung says. 

 

Jisung does not see Minho, but Minho sees him. He sees Jisung against the soft night lights of the reception hall, and if he lets himself imagine it, Jisung seems like he’s glowing golden. “I - I am,” He says, trying not to sound breathless, “I see you.” He steps closer, into the far reaches of the light and Jisung spots him, face breaking into a smile. 

 

“Hyung,” Jisung greets. 

 

Minho hears him through the phone as well. “Hey, you,” He says. They still don’t hang the phone up. There’s something softer about the way Jisung looks at him this time. “Do you wanna go in?” He asks, phone loosely held away from his ear. 

 

“Okay,” Jisung says, still holding the phone, “After you,” He murmurs. 

 

Minho ends the call with shaky fingers as Jisung helps him take his gym bag and they go up to the dining hall. The decision he made earlier in the day comes back to hit him full force and he reminds himself that he  _ needs _ to do it, that he promised himself he would do it. 

 

Before they enter the dining hall, he grabs Jisung’s wrist. “Wait - Jisungie,” Minho begins, “I - I want you to come out tonight. Can you meet me tonight at - at the place we were last time?” He can’t seem to meet Jisung’s eyes, pressing his lips together as he waits for Jisung’s answer. 

 

“Of course,” Jisung says without hesitation, “Is - Is there something going on?” He asks with some trepidation. 

 

“No!” Minho says hastily, then repeats in a lower voice, “No - nothing, I - I just wanna show you something,” He says, hoping it’s enough for the time being. 

 

“Okay,” Jisung says with a little shrug, and they make it into the dining hall, where the rest of their friends are making a huge ruckus of noise. “Minho-hyung’s here!” He announces loudly so he’s heard over the commotion of them trying to order something for dinner. 

 

“Why didn’t you pick up?” Chan says. 

 

“How was your dancing?” Felix asks from the other end of the table. 

 

“It was good!” Minho says enthusiastically, electing to ignore Chan’s question as he sits down, “I mean, it wasn’t easy, but it was good.” He chooses to get the noodle dish, fielding a barrage of questions from Chan and Hyunjin if he’s been taking care of himself.

 

The rest of dinner goes well - everyone is as noisy as usual and Minho contributes to some, if not most, of the chaos. He wonders if he’ll remember this scene in a year, or even in a week - everyone laughing and eating, eyes nearly closed with the force of their laughter; feeding each other food and stealing it when one was looking. He never knew laughter could form a harmony so pleasing, but it does, and he wants to remember this one scene forever. He could live like this for an eternity, drunk on happiness and laughter. 

 

They stay at the dining hall until they get kicked out because it’s closing time. Everyone files out slowly, slightly sobered up but still rather giggly. Minho bids the rest of them a hasty goodbye after dinner, only stopping by his hut to leave his stuff and change his clothes before he makes his onto the beach.

 

It’s half past ten, and there’s no one - it feels like he’s the only one in the universe, and he can see the night lights of his town beyond the pavilions. Underneath the vast, dark sky, he’s alone and he revels in that, takes a few moments to savor the feeling of keeping himself company. His feet lead him on a familiar path, a path that he’s taken for years until he reaches the old pavilion. 

 

The pavilion greets him like an old friend when he switches the lamp on and it flickers for a few times before filling the space with its orange glow. “I’m back,” Minho says quietly, looking at the beach from the pavilion. The lamplight seems weaker today - he’s sure the bulb needs replacing soon. 

 

Chancing a glance at his phone, he notes that it’s still early. He wonders if Jisung knows what he wants to do and reaffirms with himself that he’ll actually do what he wants to do. He sets his phone on the railing like he always does and stares out at the dark waves. The song that he’s replayed all day starts in his head and he closes his eyes, lets himself go and tries to meld seamlessly into the song. 

 

It’s not easy. 

 

Minho stumbles every now and then, unfamiliar with the setting and some parts of the choreography, but he moves on anyway - he’ll come back to it. He doesn’t realise he’s singing softly until his voice echoes back towards him in the night air, words dissolving into the breeze and taking his fears with them. 

 

He finishes the dance for the first time, halting at the entrance and where he started; opening his eyes, he breathes deeply, searching for the thin line that separates the sky and the sea, even though it’s hard to see it in the deep velvet of the night. The breeze that has been present blows a little stronger and it pushes his hair out of his eyes, streaming through his hair and batting at his clothes insistently. The waves surge forward as the breeze blows, coming a little closer to him, the waters reflecting the stars dotted across the sky.

 

For one moment, he forgets who he is. He forgets his name, forgets his stress and his worries and his fears and launches into his dance like he has nothing to lose. 

 

The song resounds in his mind so loudly that it seems like it’s actually being played, and he simply dances, rediscovering the joy of it, reminding himself why he fell in love with it in the first place, why it became his safe place when nothing else did, why it’s now a part of him and nothing else can ever replace that piece of him. 

 

Maybe it’s because he remembers the joy that came when he first danced, but when he stops again, he feels lighter, less burdened. 

 

Minho stands there for a while, looking out mindlessly into the darkness as the night descends further into a timeless state; he’s seen this scene countless times, but he doesn’t think he’s ever anticipated or been nervous about being out here. He doesn’t stay in that state for long. 

 

Out of the darkness to his left, a voice pipes up. “Minho-hyung? I’m here.” It’s Jisung, and he moves into the light, looking up at Minho. 

 

“Hey,” Minho says, feeling short of breath, “C’mon up,” He adds, gesturing for Jisung to come up the three steps and join him. 

 

“What did you want to show me?” Jisung asks after a while, the backs of their hands touching as he follows Minho’s suit and looks out into the night. 

 

“You remember the song you gave me?” Minho says, feeling like his voice might fail him anytime soon, “I - I -” Jisung’s hand wraps around his, “ - I choreographed it,” He finishes, voice shaking so much he’s surprised he can form words. “It’s why I’ve been dancing in the studio yesterday and today.” 

 

Jisung’s grip tightens then loosens, and he turns to Minho, looking astonished. “You - You really did? I -  _ shit _ \- ” He runs his free hand through his hair, “ - I didn’t - I didn’t really think you’d dance to it,” He says, looking disbelieving. 

 

“Well, I did,” Minho says, finding his bravery somewhere in between Jisung’s reaction and the warm hand holding his, “It’s a beautiful song, Jisung - it’d be a waste not to try and dance to it when you wrote it for me to dance.” He turns too, holding Jisung’s other hand so they’re facing each other. “Do - Do you wanna see it? I can’t guarantee it’s perfect,” He says, laughing a little. 

 

“I would be so honoured,” Jisung replies, lacing their fingers together, “Nothing is perfect - not even us, or the song I gave you. I don’t think it’s perfect but - but it’s good. And that’s enough.” 

 

“Okay,” Minho whispers, letting go of Jisung’s hand but he doesn’t look away from Jisung, stepping further into the middle of the pavilion where the light is brightest.  _ Watch me _ , he says silently as he plays the song out loud on his phone,  _ Keep your eyes on me _ . 

 

Jisung does. Minho weaves in and out of the light and around the pavilion, losing himself in the song that Jisung created for him and - and he’s awe-struck. There’s an incredibly grounding tone to the dance, like Minho is trying to express that he’s human and he’s fallible; combined with the song, it seems like he’s portraying the days they’ve all spent together in dance form. Jisung sees summer - bright days and cool nights - but he also sees the waves and the wind that were the only other witnesses to the first time he sees Minho dancing. He sees Minho playing in the water in the moonlight. He sees all his friends laughing together at the campfire. He sees himself through Minho’s eyes and he sees himself falling. 

 

Minho’s dance seems like an eternity frozen within a single, brilliant moment. Jisung wants to freeze each step in a glass bottle, so that he can take it out and relieve it when this summer is a thing of the past and not his tomorrow. 

 

“You’re amazing,” Jisung says when Minho comes to a stop, “I - That was beautiful. I - I feel like I’m watching magic,” He confesses as Minho takes a few steps towards him, smiling shyly. 

 

“Your song is magic,” Minho says, reaching out for Jisung’s hands. “You said last time you’d dance with me, Jisung… Dance with me?” He tugs on Jisung’s hands lightly, and they step into the brightness, light casting their shadows intertwined. “Let yourself go,” He whispers, their hands still tightly laced together, “Don’t care about anything else - look at me if you need to.” 

 

“I am,” Jisung says. 

 

The song filters through the night air, notes echoing endlessly through the breeze and they hang in the frozen memories of each moment. Every chord and every note is accompanied by their giggles as they dance together clumsily, eyes only on each other. “You’re not too bad,” Minho says in a teasing tone, “And you said you couldn’t dance?” 

 

“I try,” Jisung says, and he’s laughing too, raising his arm for Minho to execute an impromptu swirl. 

 

When Minho faces Jisung again, he can’t help but smile brightly, mirroring Jisung. Then the song descends into a soft nothing and - since when did he rest his arms on Jisung’s shoulders, or since when had Jisung pulled him in by the waist until they’re flush against each other? He doesn’t know, but he hardly cares. “You’re looking at me,” He says softly, fingers running through Jisung’s hair. 

 

“So are you,” Jisung says. He doesn’t look away. 

 

“You know, I wanted to do something,” Minho says as the wind blows past them and presses cold fingers to their bare skin, “I wanted to… wanted to tell you something.” 

 

“So did I,” Jisung says, and somehow, he finds himself so close to Minho. He can see the dark circles under his brilliant gaze that haven’t faded; he notes the long eyelashes and the way they flutter; he watches the pale pink flush rise on Minho’s cheeks and tries not to notice that they match the colour of his lips. “You go first, hyung.”

 

Minho watches Jisung, watches as Jisung meets his gaze the way he couldn’t before, how he seems within reach when he seemed to be so far away before. “I like you, Jisungie,” He says, and the words seem so easy to say when they’re the words he’s been fretting over for days. “I like you a lot.” He laces his finger together behind Jisung’s neck. 

 

“You took the words out of my mouth, how can I say them now?” Jisung asks teasingly. 

 

“I’m sure you can,” Minho says, his heart infinitely lighter and a smile quirks his lips up. 

 

“I like you too, Minho-hyung,” Jisung says, “I like you so very much.” And if Minho dares to look, he’s smiling like the sun has risen, and Minho’s own sunshine is standing right in front of him, a kiss’ breadth apart and very much human-formed. “Hyung…” Jisung starts as they draw closer, “Can I kiss you?” 

 

“Yes,” Minho says, feeling like happiness is palpable on his tongue, “Yes, you can.” 

 

“Okay,” Is the last thing Jisung says before he’s kissing Minho, lips cold against each others but their bodies are warm and it’s okay if Minho is with him, tomorrow will be okay, tomorrow will still come, just a bit brighter, a bit more hopeful and a bit more happier. 

 

“Okay?” Minho whispers against his lips when they part slightly. 

 

“Yeah,” Jisung whispers back, and even though his eyes are closed and it’s more dark than light, he feels like Minho’s brightness burns through his eyelids. 

 

“Again,” Minho says quietly, and then they’re kissing softly once again, a simple press of their lips together that feels right, feels like home. 

 

Outside the pavilion and their little sphere of calmness, the stars twinkle the fiercest they’ve ever been, reflecting off the onyx waters, but neither of them look at this. There are galaxies of stars they’ve never seen in each others eyes and forever is a midnight whose sunrise never breaks over the horizon. They’re home.

 

* * *

 

Morning follows their timeless night with indecent haste and the sun rises like it felt the need to reestablish its presence. The first thing Jisung feels is hair tickling his face, and he grumbles slightly, wondering why he would feel  _ hair  _ on his face of all things - until he opens his eyes sleepily and finds Minho’s head on his chest. Minho, who’s still very much asleep. Minho, who he confessed to last night. Minho, his  _ boyfriend _ . 

 

“You guys are so  _ cute _ ,” A voice whispers accompanied by a loud  _ click _ . Then several more clicks fully wake Jisung up more, and he finds himself staring into a phone camera. 

 

It takes everything in Jisung to not scream and hit Seungmin. “What - Why’re  _ you _ \- Why’s  _ everyone  _ here?” He can vaguely see everyone else mulling outside the pavilion, chatting lowly amongst themselves and looking concernedly into the pavilion where they are. 

 

“We couldn’t find both of you in the morning, so of course we freaked out and went to find you,” Woojin says, “What were you guys doing? Why did you forget to go back and decide to sleep here, of all places?” He raises an eyebrow and waits for Jisung’s explanation. 

 

“We… got caught up,” Jisung says vaguely, trying not to jostle Minho too much. 

 

“With what?” Seungmin asks, something dangerously like evil lurking in his voice. 

 

“Stuff,” Jisung says firmly, “Now shut up, he’s still sleeping.” 

 

“Go back to sleep in your  _ room _ ,” Woojin says with the air of dealing with a stubborn toddler, “You can carry Minho, can’t you? Take him back and you guys can go back to sleep somewhere warm and safe.” He helps Jisung carry Minho, who is miraculously still fast asleep, and they heave him back to the resort. 

 

“What happened?” Chan asks once they’re outside and offers to take over carrying Minho from Woojin. 

 

“The usual,” Woojin says, “Our kids being idiots - I wonder who they got it from.” 

 

Jisung hardly hears a word of what anyone else is saying, both too tired to listen and also more focused on Minho, who has just started to wake up. “Wha - What?” Minho says, interrupted by a yawn, “Jisung? Where are we? Wh - Why’re you carrying me?” He looks up, eyes more shut than open and his head lolls onto Jisung’s shoulder and he makes an incoherent noise. 

 

“We’re going back to sleep,” Jisung says, trying not to combust from witnessing a sleepy Minho, “Close your eyes, hyung.”

 

Minho obliges, and in what seems like a few seconds, he finds himself with a fluffy blanket and a soft pillow and a warm body. “Jisung?” He murmurs sleepily, and the body next to him shifts closer, wraps an arm around his waist. 

 

“I’m here,” Jisung says, sleep edging its way into his voice, “Go to sleep.” He doesn’t remember much after that, except that he sleeps well, more at peace that he’s been for a while, and there’s a scent that he can't quite identify that fills his nose as he sleeps. If he had to describe it, he supposes he would say ‘summer’, and maybe it’s the fact that he’s not on tenterhooks anymore, or maybe it’s because of the calming scent, but his sleep is dreamless and peaceful.

 

Outside, Woojin sighs as they close the door. “They’re going to fall sick if they keep doing that,” He says. 

 

“They’re already sick,” Hyunjin corrects, laughing gleefully as he looks at the pictures Seungmin had captured, “They’re  _ lovesick _ , hyung.” 

 

* * *

 

As it turns out, having one final hangout together with a newly formed couple in their honeymoon stage can stage a little hurdle. Maybe not  _ that _ little. 

 

“We… We weren’t like that, were we?” Felix asks Changbin tentatively, watching Minho and Jisung feed each other bits of food off their own plate. “Please tell me we weren’t that bad.” 

 

“No comment,” Changbin says, “You should ask an impartial side for that. Do you want some of this? It’s pretty good.” 

 

“Both of you are bad,” Jeongin says wryly, “You’re just not used to seeing them display their affection so openly -” He’s cut off when Chan squeaks and covers his eyes, starting to lecture Minho for wiping Jisung’s lips like that when there are innocent eyes around. 

 

“What, would you rather me kiss it off?” Minho says, defending himself. 

 

“He has a fair point you know,” Woojin points out as Chan blusters for an explanation. “They’re not too bad at keeping this pg-rated… but you’re not trying too hard to not keep it pg-rated as well,” He adds when Jisung feeds Minho a bite of his rice and wipes the corner of his mouth. 

 

“I’m trying to eat with my partner, can’t I do that?” Jisung asks. 

 

“Try not to be so obviously gross about it,” Hyunjin advises, “It takes a while to master the art of being affectionate in public while not making other people feel put-out by it.” Indeed, it  _ does _ , because somehow he and Seungmin don’t gross everyone else out when they share food together, and their affection seems low on the radar. 

 

“We have time to perfect the art,” Minho says in a dignified voice, “Don’t we?” 

 

“Course we do,” Jisung says, looking spell-binded. 

 

“I’d rather have them like this than them pining over each other,” Seungmin says, snorting, “Both of them were dancing around each other when you clearly knew you liked each other.” Then he proceeds to start recounting all the times Minho came to him in a panic, asking if Jisung actually meant what the flowers said, or whether kissing him on the cheek was too forward.  

 

At that, Jeongin launches into a speech about Jisung, naming that particular time Jisung woke at six and fretted about, waking him up. It all turns out to be quite funny, watching as they divulge the couple’s nervousness before they got together, especially when Minho and Jisung both turn differing shades of red and fidget about as the stories are recounted. 

 

“I mean - the florist recommend me the types of flowers when I told her what I wanted to tell you,” Jisung says shyly, “So - yeah - I mean the roses from the second time round are pretty obvious, aren’t they?” 

 

“They were very pretty,” Minho says, “They’re in my room now. Did you see them yesterday while you were in my room? They last quite long if I put them in this concoction I made…” His sentence dissolves away as Hyunjin asks about the flowers from the first time and Minho hums, wondering if he should just tell everyone what they mean. 

 

“Well, you guys are  _ very _ cute, at any rate,” Woojin says before someone else interrogates Minho about the flowers. “But who confessed, actually?” His question causes another uproar and they’re bombarded with questions, most of them variations of  _ I can’t believe I forgot to ask that!  _ or  _ Don’t you think it was mutual _ ? and Jisung’s personal favourite  _ Didn’t Jisung confess through that song of his?  _ that Changbin asked quietly through the chaos.

 

“Yes, somewhat,” Jisung answers loudly through the noise. 

 

“Mmhm,” Minho agrees, having heard Changbin as well, “But I said it first, didn’t I?” 

 

“I told you to go first!” 

 

“Which means  _ I  _ confessed first!”

 

“Alright then,” Jisung concedes after a few moments, “Minho-hyung said it to me first.” 

 

Across the table, Seungmin smiles smugly and holds his hand out. With a defeated sigh, Changbin and Jeongin deposit money into his waiting palm; Seungmin pockets it and smiles innocently at the rest of them. “What? I had a running bet with them about who would confess first, and I put my faith in Minho-hyung.” 

 

“Am… Am I supposed to be pleased?” Minho says a little uncertainty, then, “Thank you, I’m glad you chose me,” He says loudly, evidently taking this piece of information as a good thing. 

 

“About time you got the courage,” Felix says, “I thought I would keep hearing you pine after Jisung well after summer ends.” 

 

“I did,” Minho says, “We did.” He smiles at Jisung, finding his happiness mirrored. It’s one moment that Minho might never remember, but for now, he does - Jisung, smiling at him, sunlight streaming through the big windows and his friends laughing around them. It’s one dazzling moment among all the brilliance he sees. He might have to say goodbye to Jisung soon, but that’s tomorrow and one more yet; his present is still summer, and summer is Jisung. 

 

Their goodbyes can wait for a little longer. 

 

* * *

 

_ 2 months later _

 

His phone reads the time.  _ 4:02 a.m. _ Han Jisung has spent too much time being awake and too little being asleep for the sake of making a song. The things he does for perfection.

 

If Jisung is honest, he has no idea how he survived the first week of term, let alone the rest of it. Going back to university after his carefree summer had been a startling change, and thus he reacquainted himself with A Shit Ton of Stress, No Sleep Tonight and Impending Mental Breakdowns, all good friends of his that he thought he had left behind.

 

Which is why, two months after his summer vacation, he finds himself balancing all of his work with all of his other extra commitments and it’s no wonder he gets close to no sleep. Jisung’s tired gaze slides from word word on the bright white page of his document - an essay he’s trying to write but whose topic he’s forgotten for the moment. Deciding to stop for the night, he eyes his bed longingly but his hand reaches for his phone, wondering if Minho had replied to his latest text at all. 

 

_ You’ll fit in the city okay, hyungie! Don’t worry, I’ll take you around whenever you want  _ plus a little smiley face went unread and he had sent it a day ago - and according to the app, Minho was last online a  _ week ago _ . Chalking it up to Minho being busy packing, he yawns and wonders if he should get something to drink, suddenly feeling the hunger pangs. 

 

Therefore, after looking slightly more presentable, he stumbles into the one reliable coffee shop he knows is always open twenty four hours seven days a week. It’s also the only one that’s closest to his dorm, and he doesn’t want to go anywhere far for coffee at four in the morning. He’s sure he looks like he’s been dragged through hell and had a personal invite from Satan - but small details. 

 

“A - A hot chocolate please,” Jisung mutters to the barista, squinting at the lecture notes he brought out for some reason and wondering if has the mental capacity to stomach the notes and live to tell the tale. 

 

“Ji - Jisung?” The barista says in a familiar voice. It’s a voice that Jisung spent the whole summer listening to, and he isn’t in a hurry to forget it anytime soon. 

 

Jisung’s head snaps up and forces his blurry eyes open. “I - what - hyung?  _ Minho-hyung _ ? What - What’re you doing here?” He asks, torn between the urge to laugh and the desire to sweep Minho into his arms. 

 

“I just arrived,” Minho says, looking equally astonished but a smile is blooming over his face, “I did tell you I’d be coming soon, but I came earlier than expected - like, last week, instead of next week. Chan-hyung introduced me to this place and said I could work the night shift here since I prefer to sleep in the morning and - and does he know you come here often or something?” 

 

The realisation dawns on Jisung. “He does! We would always come here… But I haven’t seen you here last week, and you haven’t been online for ages,” He adds, trying not to sound too petulant. 

 

“I’m sorry,” Minho says guiltily, moving around the coffee machine, “I was busy, moving here and all, then I wasn’t used to being in such a huge city - and I just started working here yesterday! It’s only my second shift… Here’s your hot chocolate.” He says, proceeding to ring it up on the cash register. 

 

“Thank you,” Jisung murmurs, handing over his money and nursing the hot cup. “Also, I don’t blame you, you’re busy and so was I. Are you doing okay, though? I can take you around town whenever you’re free, the offer always stands.” 

 

Minho smiles, leaning against the counter and cupping his face, dropping his professional facade for a while. “If you’re not tired that is - otherwise you can just come over to my apartment and we can sleep the whole day. It’s near this dance company -” He names a company that Jisung has heard of, “ - and the whole apartment is actually for the dancers! Isn’t it cool?” 

 

“It is!” Jisung says enthusiastically, having heard of the news that Minho had been accepted by the dance company some two weeks previously. There are a few moments of silence as Jisung sips his coffee and Minho looks at him. “Hyung,” Jisung says, setting his coffee down, “Can I -?” 

 

“Yeah,” Minho says, nodding so fast his bangs flop up and down, “Yeah.” 

 

Jisung laughs as he leans in, and laughing while kissing isn’t something easy, Jisung would take it over not having Minho beside at all. He’s sure his breath tastes of chocolate, but Minho doesn’t seem to care, and all their kisses are a little too much teeth, a little too much laughing and a little too much chocolate. “Welcome to the city,” Jisung says quietly against Minho’s mouth. 

 

“I think you mean welcome back,” Minho says, giggling, pressing another kiss to the corner of Jisung’s mouth, relishing in the sunshine-bright smile that unfurls upon Jisung’s face, looking so incredibly fond that Minho can’t help but press a few more kisses to his soft cheeks. 

 

Maybe Jisung  _ does _ mean to welcome him back. Tomorrow will be another day of running around campus and finalising his song, but it’s a little bit happier, a lot more hopeful. Minho will be there tomorrow, and the day after that and all the tomorrows that Jisung will have. They have an eternity of tomorrows together. 

 

Though it’s still a little too early to say ‘I love you’ to each other. 

 

“Welcome back, then,” Jisung whispers, “You’re home.” 

 

“I’m home.” Minho says, smile still as sweet as the one Jisung remembers. When Jisung looks into his eyes like he did the first time, he sees summer again, sees the old pavilion and the starry night sky and the blue waters and - there’s nowhere else he’d rather be. “You’re still looking at me,” Minho says in a soft voice, hands curling around Jisung’s waist. 

 

“I am,” Jisung agrees, cupping Minho’s face fondly. 

 

They’re home.

**Author's Note:**

> i would just like to say this is my first stray kids fic and ITS THIS LONG clearly i have no impulse control but what can i say?? fun fact: i seriously considered naming this 'Look at Me (i am)' bc of how many times they said it throughout the fic, but i kept it as 'A Piece Of Summer' after Lovelyz's Wag-Zak and also because it's a SUMMER fic gotta have that somewhere right
> 
> alsO i am an Only Child and if you could tell, I'm sorry please come by and tell me how to write sibling relationships!! I love all your constructive comments!!
> 
> important note: i am aware that not everyone experiences difficulties the way i do, and minho's stress and breakdown here is highly based off my own experiences (not the relationship part as i have never been in one) and i would like to stress that having a love interest does not mean he will automatically be better and magically healed - but only help him. the love interest is not a cure, it is something that helps you sometimes and other times it simply doesnt. i would also like to add that this isn't something that is overcome quickly, so i apologise if the pacing is too fast, as my wordcount was getting ridiculous and i wanted to come to a satisfactory ending without being too long-winded.
> 
> disclaIMER: i have not been to university, know very very little about producing music, have some knowledge in making choreography and dancing;;; so as u can see i tried my best to make it seem realistic but if it doesn't comment below and i will definitely take a look at it! 
> 
> in other words i wrote this in a month and i have anoTher (yeS anoTHER) fic coming up (maybe 2 idk i have 0 impulse control) so if yall wanna watch out for that too hehe


End file.
